The Werewolf and the Wampyr
by Green Platypus
Summary: Dark forces gather in the world. When Shaggy, Velma, and Scooby are kidnapped by an ancient evil, it is up to Fred and Daphne to save them with the help of a secret order dedicated to fighting the darkness. So begins a race across the globe for the mysterious Chest of Demons, while Shaggy finally faces the strange power within him. AU Sequel to the Gargoyle and the Gangsters. S/V.
1. Epigraph

Nothing contributes so much to tranquilizing the mind as a steady purpose - a point on which the soul may fix its intellectual eye.

-**Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley**

"I learned to recognize the thorough and primitive duality of man; I saw that, of the two natures that contended in the field of my consciousness, even if I could rightly be said to be either, it was only because I was radically both."

-**Robert Louis Stevenson**


	2. 20 Years Ago

**Well, here it is. You've all been a great audience so I won't hold you up any longer. This first chapter of the final _Dracula Chronicles _story would go very nicely with "Reunited" from the _Van Helsing _soundtrack. Enjoy.**

**Part 1: 20 Years Ago**

Sam dived behind one of the larger headstones in the churchyard. Behind him a sign reading _Welcome to Oakhaven _was blasted apart. Ravencroft was getting closer. He only hoped that Beau had gotten the McKnight woman and her family to safety. All he could think of was her poor baby girl, much too young to have to deal with things like this.

"I can smell you dog" Ravencroft sneered as he glided into the graveyard. "You can't hide from me."

Sam stood up and pulled a revolver out of his robes. "Not trying to hide."

He squeezed the trigger sending a silver bullet streaming towards the man. Ben Ravencroft had yesterday been simply another warlock. One of a specific breed of people born with such powers. Now, having absorbed the spirit of a witch ancestor of his, he had doubled his power and halved his sanity.

Ravencroft held out his hand and stopped the bullet in midair. A ghostly female visage flashed across his face as he did so, the spirit of Sarah Ravencroft. Sam ejected his gauntlet blades, ready to go down fighting.

"Pathetic"

"Ravencroft!" A woman yelled behind him.

Sam looked past the madman to see the woman he and Beau had been sent here to save. Elizabeth McKnight was young, just married, a mother, yet she stood resolute against Ravencroft like the most experienced knights Sam had met. Behind her Beau was running at her, trying to stop her. Her husband, Jack, was taking shelter behind a parked car, holding their baby daughter Sally close to his chest.

"Misses McKnight! Elizabeth! Please!" Sam yelled running towards her, but he was too late.

She had already begun to chant her incantation. Ravencroft realized what was happening too late. He was blasted away in a flash of light, maybe dead, maybe just weakened. The shockwave sent Sam flying. His ribs cracked as he crashed through the wooden door of a mausoleum. A plaque reading _O'Flannery Family Crypt _smacked him in the face. If he ever met a member of this O'Flannery family he would have to give his apologies.

He landed hard at the deepest level of the structure, having been blasted down at least three flights of stairs. His head rested against a stone marker, denoting the name of the man behind it; _Alexander O'Flannery_.

_Free us_

Sam jerked his head around, swearing he had heard something. His eyes were swimming and his ears felt like they were stuffed with cotton. A sharp pain shot through his chest as he squirmed on the hard stone floor.

_Bring the key. Open the prison…_

The noises stopped as his head cleared. Slowly Samuel Colton Rogers stumbled up the stairs and out into the open air, clutching his aching ribs. The sun was rising just over the steeple of the old church house. There was no sign of Ravencroft, but he could see Fletcher kneeling over the damn spell book that had brought them here in the first place.

Cautiously he picked it up and then set fire to it. The flames emanated from his fingers and licked at the two hundred year old leather bound tome. In a matter of moments Fletcher closed his hand as the book was reduced to ash.

"That's the end of that" He said solemnly.

"Oh my god!" Beau's voice cut through the quiet dawn. "Fletcher get over here, this woman needs a doctor!"

Sam and Fletcher ran to where Beau and Rachael were kneeling by McKnight. She was laying still with her hands to her stomach. Her chest was moving up and down erratically and Sam could hear the raggedness in her breath. Across the town square her husband ran towards them, still clutching the baby girl.

"What's wrong with her?" Beau asked worriedly.

"She's overexerted herself." Fletcher said sliding next to them. "Too much magic in too little time."

"Good God" Jack McKnight cried as he came closer. "No, Elizabeth no!" He sobbed.

"Can't you do anything?" Sam said frantically looking from the woman to her distraught family.

Fletcher covered his mouth with both hands and breathed heavily. "I'm sorry" he sighed. "I'm so sorry."

"No!" Sam grunted. "We were here to protect this woman!"

Elizabeth turned to him. Her skin was pale and her breath was barely a whisper. But her eyes were still focused.

"Don't blame yourself." She smiled. "You did everything you could."

"You saved us" Sam sobbed. "I'm so sorry."

Slowly Elizabeth McKnight's breathing stopped. Her face was still smiling, looking over at her family. Fletcher snapped his fingers at Jack and his daughter. Both froze with glazed looks in their eyes.

"I'll implant false memories. Merlyn can do it for the rest of the town, I'll do them personally."

"Fletcher…" Sam sighed as he sat on both knees next to the body, his hands resting in front of him and his head bowed. "Do me a favor, when you do it, make sure they remember that she died a hero."

Fletcher nodded and then began making his way to them. Sam sat there on the grass in town square. Eventually Beau and Rachael stood up as more Knights arrived to do cleanup. But Sam sat there until Elizabeth was taken. She would be buried like a hero; he would make sure of it.

Finally he stood up and made his way back to the car. He would take some time off, maybe visit Europe, maybe Ireland. He just needed to get some rest.


	3. Assault on the Brotherhood

**Part 2: Assault on the Brotherhood**

Vincent Van Ghoul looked out across his office. Over the years it had amassed a wide assortment of trophies and souvenirs. On the wall behind him hung a large Tibetan kukri knife. A glass cabinet against the far wall was filled with precious stones and artifacts, orichalcum, an Egyptian dagger, a silver cane.

However, what he was most focused on now was the set of enchanted mirrors floating just in front of his desk. Each one displayed one of his teams out across the world. He took his eyes away from the display as a knock sounded on the door.

"Enter"

The door opened and in walked Jonathan and Rachael Fletcher, his most trusted lieutenants. Both stood at attention, Rachael in her blue combat robes with her curved swords strapped to her back and Jonathan in his black warlock's robes.

"Sir" Rachael bowed. "My teams report no activity around the sites designated for our protection. Never the less, I wish to increase security around both Blake Hall and the Saunders Mansion. I could have teams to join Warner and Thomas within the hour."

"Permission granted" Vincent nodded at her. "Jonathan?"

"Both Demas and O' Reilly report they are close to finding the pieces of the key in France and Bavaria. Doctor Spartan has finished analysis on the one we recovered from the _Draco's Revenge _incident. She has determined it to be a piece of the key as well, bringing our current tally to three."

"Excellent" Vincent said as he waved one of the mirrors closer to him. "I was just about to consult Demas in Paris."

The mirror fogged over for a moment before going into sharp relief. A man in his late thirties appeared in a tan khaki shirt and wide brimmed hat tucked over graying brown hair.

"Mister Van Ghoul" He said in a thick Greek accent. "I was just about to call. I think we are being followed…" He was cut off as a dark shape swooped in and carried him out of frame.

"Demas!" Van Ghoul screamed standing up. "Jonathan go!"

Jonathan nodded and cast his hand at the mirror. A swirling portal opened up and he sprinted in. Soon he appeared in the mirror itself as he erupted from his portal halfway around the world in Paris. Rachael and Van Ghoul watched in horror as the creature swooped at Jonathan. He reached out his hand and shot a plume of fire at it but it dodged, gliding on leathery bat wings.

"My God" Van Ghoul whispered. "It's one of them."

Jonathan ducked as the creature released something from its grasp. A body plummeted to the ground and the creature flew away. Jonathan knelt by the body, coming face to face with a pale and lifeless Demas. He gave Van Ghoul and Rachael an expression of pure shock and grief. All at once horrible screams erupted on the other mirrors.

Van Ghoul stared in horror as his men and women around the world were attacked. He heard their cries and saw the fire as their holdings across the globe burned. From each mirror, amidst the chaos he heard a manic cackling and he knew who was behind this, as if there was any doubt. This meant war.


	4. Graduation Day

**"The World is Ahead" from _The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey _soundtrack.**

**Part 3: Graduation Day**

Fredrick Bradley Jones had done a lot of scary things. He had flown antique fighter jets against aliens. He had fought mummies and pirates and mobsters. He had nearly died at least a dozen times. He had had dinner with Daphne's parents. But today was the scariest of all. Today was graduation day and he was about to be late.

Hastily he grabbed his lucky wallet, his orange bandana, his tin of mints, and his cap and gown and booked it out of the house. The Coolsville clock tower loomed in the distance, ticking off minutes until it began ringing. _Naturally today had to be the day that the van is in the shop _he thought as he pulled on his robes while running down the street. Several neighbors waved at him and laughed nostalgically. _Sure, it's funny for you._ The school came into view and he burst through the door just as everyone was lining up for the rehearsal.

Everybody was already there; Shaggy, Jimmy, Velma, Marcie, Eric, Shannon, Minga, Dell, Red. And there was Daphne, standing their waiting for him looking stunning, angry, but stunning.

"Sorry" He panted as he ran up to her. "Overslept."

"It's fine" She laughed, fixing his crooked cap. "Just get on stage."

The rehearsal lasted three hours and then everyone was free to go until the real thing at eight. Still, parents and families were already arriving, getting parking spaces and buying last minute gifts. He could see Velma's parents already demanding photos. Dell's father was high-fiving him. Eric's mother was frantically trying to stall him while her girlfriend hid a graduation present in the trunk of their car. The Blakes were talking to Fred's own parents, now there was a scary thought.

He walked across the street to where he saw Shaggy sitting under a tree with Scooby. He was absently scratching Scooby's ears while staring at the wolf charm around his neck.

He looked up as Fred approached. "Like, any word on the castle, or those people I asked you about."

A few months back Shaggy had asked that Fred look into a castle he had been dreaming about, and a couple named Seamus and Fiona. In the time since he had exhausted every resource he had, those resources being Eric, Dell, and Marcy, who made no secret of how exhausted they were.

"I'm going to meet them at the coffee shop in a bit, you wanna come?"

Shaggy nodded and a while later he and Scooby followed Fred down the street. They entered the small café and met Eric and the others by the back. Shaggy was grateful to each of them. All of them had assisted in cases before, but this was different. This was something personal and he knew that they and Fred had been working for months to help him find answers. They all had their own lives, college applications, school. All four had girlfriends that they were away from right now just to help out. Shaggy could not help but feel immense gratitude.

"What's the latest?" Fred asked sliding into their booth.

"Well…" Eric smirked. "Dell's ecstatic, I'm exhausted, and Marcie's girlfriend might think she's having an affair…"

"I'll explain things to Abby for you" Fred said awkwardly. "But have you found anything?"

"That depends" Eric leaned back in his seat. "Shaggy, when did your mom's side of the family come to America?"

"Like, uh, around the Civil War I think."

"Alright, Marcie you explain what you found then…" Eric stood up. "I'm gonna get another round of espressos… anyone else want anything?"

Fred and Shaggy looked at him worriedly as he went up to the counter. A few cups already lined their table and there was a noticeable shake in his hands.

"Like, is he alright?"

"Don't worry about him, he's just nervous about tonight, Shannon and Daphne's whole family is coming to the ceremony and I think they kinda scare him."

"Yeah, they scare me too" Fred said. "So, what'd you find?"

"Well, there was a couple in Ireland, around the late eighteen forties named Seamus and Fiona O'Flannery. Now they disappeared from the record books toward the end of the decade, but just before the civil war, two Irish siblings by the names of Alexander and Marion O'Flannery settled down in America. If we look at the records, their ages match up with Seamus and Fiona's children Alexander and Marion back in Kilkenny, Ireland, which as I understand it, is where your family came from. But here's where it all comes together, wanna take a guess at where they settled when they got here?"

"Like, uh, Boston?"

"So, close…" Marcie smiled. "They settled in a small town called Oakhaven."

"Raggy" Scooby looked up him excitedly.

"I know bud" Shaggy nodded. "So, I'm, like, dreaming about ancestors?"

"Not the craziest part…" Dell said, finally looking up from his computer. "I ran the sketch Jimmy made based on your description of the castle. Tell, me, ever heard of O'Flannery Hall?"

"O'Flannery what now?"

"Shaggy, those people, that castle you saw, it was theirs, O'Flannery Hall."

"Like…" Shaggy stared at him in disbelief. "My family has a castle?"

"Oh my god!" Fred let his mouth hang open. "Your family is rich! Your first car had no air conditioner… and no roof!"

"Hey, we might not, like, have the money anymore. My mom's always been quiet about her family. Both her parents died before she even met my dad, heck I only just found out that she had a brother." Shaggy unconsciously fingered the charms around his neck.


	5. Doo Reunion

**Part 4: Doo Reunion**

Scooby sprinted across the backyard as Rudy kicked the ball towards him. Chrissie was blocking Howdy as Scooby dove for it, smacking it with his paws and sending it into the goal. Ruby smiled as her brothers left the field and joined her inside the house.

It had been about a month since the family had reconnected. Shaggy's parents had tracked down all of their owners and now, on the day of Shaggy's graduation, they had all come to visit. It had also been about a month since Chrissie had come to live with them. Scooby's family were all very impressed and expecting a happy announcement any day now.

This of course was massive speculation on their part and Scooby was growing rather tired of it. That was why he was relieved when Ruby had made her own special announcement first.

"The litter's due in a few weeks" She said in a mixture of pride and excitement.

"Congratulations sis" Her brothers said almost in unison.

"That's a hell of a thing" Chrissie smiled.

"Yeah" Howdy smirked. "So you think you and Scoob might…"

"Don't even" Chrissie interrupted, showing off her teeth.

"You got a feisty one there… _Uncle Scooby_" Ruby smiled. "You know the pups'll look up to you the most, the great detective, the wolf fighter_… Coyote_"

"You and Chrissie really need to stop talking so much." Scooby barked, scratching awkwardly at his ear.

"I've been meaning to ask you, how's the human?"

"Shaggy? He's been different. He's a good guy you know, but there's something in him, something he can't explain. You should see the way he looks at those things on his collar, it's like he's trying to remember something he never knew."

"Wow… that was either really poetic or really dumb."

"It was probably dumb" Scooby laughed.

They both paused for a moment. Outside the sun was setting. Ruby had begun looking off into the distance. "Everything's changing bro, I just hope my pups can handle it."

"They'll be your kids Ruby, they'll be brave, and caring, and they'll probably be scrappers."

Both siblings laughed.


	6. Ask Daphne

**Part 5: Ask Daphne**

"So that's the situation" Velma finished, looking at Daphne expectantly.

Daphne paused for a moment and sipped her tea. That had run on longer than she had thought. When Velma has said she wanted relationship advice she had expected a simpler problem, not the entire history of her and Shaggy's evolving feelings for each other over multiple years.

She looked hopefully at Shannon and Minga for help. Both of them just smiled in a way that suggested that they had tuned out of Velma's narrative a good hour ago. Daphne suddenly wished that she were off somewhere else. The boys were probably playing darts or something, she wanted to go play darts.

"Darts" Daphne nodded before realizing she'd let her mind wander. "I mean talk, talk to him or… jeez I don't know, I thought this would be something like 'he can't express his feelings' not 'he's the Hulk'"

"I just don't know what to think" Velma sighed. "He's so sweet normally, but that night in New York, something's different about him. It just scared me."

"Well, maybe you can ask him about it during the meeting." Daphne said looking at her phone. "He's just called one at the bookstore in twenty minutes."


	7. Summer Plans

**Part 6: Summer Plans**

It was usually Fred who called and led the meetings. It being Shaggy was slightly odd. Never the less Mysteries Inc. (and extended support team) all sat around the shop as he explained his situation.

"Like, this summer, I've decided I'm going to visit Ireland. You probably know, at least through Fred, that some weird stuff has been happening to me. With the help of some of you, I now have at least one concrete lead. There's a castle in Ireland that I've been dreaming about, and I'm going there as soon after graduation as possible, either tomorrow or the day after. I don't know how long it'll take. I don't even know if I'll find anything, but I have to try. I'd like help, but nobody is obligated to go."

Fred stood up. "Shaggy I was in back in New York, hell I was in back when we met here two years ago."

"And if Fred's going I am." Daphne said. "Besides, you'll need someone familiar with castles."

"Rime always rith you."

Finally Velma stood up, still avoiding eye contact with Shaggy but just as sure in her convictions as the others.

"You'll never find a thing without me there, so I guess I'm in."

"Even if we don't go man…" Eric said, looking at the rest of the group. "We're behind you, a hundred percent. So if you need tech or research or muscle, we got your back.'


	8. Commencement

**What else for this but "Pomp and Circumstance" Of course, towards the middle you might try "Why so Serious" from _The Dark Knight _soundtrack. You'll see why.**

**Part 7: Commencement**

The school was lit up like there was a concert. Families poured in by the hundreds and graduates lined up ready to formally finish their High School careers. Sam Rogers took a seat right towards the front with his family. The Blakes were right behind them and they had invited the Fletchers. That made Sam feel safer. It brought the total Knights in attendance up to seven. Himself, John and Rachael, Charlie, Beau, and Warner.

Ever since the attack two days ago he had been on edge. Such an offensive indicated that their enemy was planning something. But if Vincent knew anything he wasn't talking. Still, now was a time for enjoyment. His son was graduating. So Sam leaned back as Velma took the podium for her valedictorian speech.

"Fellow graduates, parents, teachers, I'll keep this brief don't worry. I know everyone wants to get on to diplomas and dinner." She and the audience shared a chuckle. "When we first started here, some of us knew each other, some of us didn't. Some of us were friends and some of us were enemies. In four years a lot has changed. The people we've met, the things we've learned and the things we've done will stay with us, and I mean that in the best possible way. College will shape us, but that shaping would be pointless without what happened here. This is the place where we found out who we were and…"

"So sorry to interrupt" A voice rang out from the back of the auditorium.

The doors burst open and Sam could almost feel every Knight in the room swearing to themselves.

"Beau, get ready" Sam whispered.

"I am looking…" The visitor said in a smooth British accent as he strode down the aisles and toward the stage. "For a mister Norville Rogers." He wore a dark double breasted suit with black gloves. White bandages wrapped around his head, completely obscuring it except for the eyes. Those were covered by dark circular glasses. "Does anybody know where he is, does anybody know who he is?"

At least thirty men in dark body armor marched in behind him with rifles. Sam un-clicked the safety on his gauntlets. He saw Beau and Warner do the same. Charlie was standing still but Sam bet his internal systems were tracking every man in the room. John had a ball of fire discretely growing in his palm and Rachael was pulling two large daggers out of her purse.

"Waiting for your signal Rachael." Sam whispered again.

"Come on now, I haven't got all night" The masked figure cackled as he waved a long metal rod around, two prongs on the end crackled with blue electricity.

Rachael flicked her eyes at each Knight in the room. "Now!"

Beau moved first, sticking his blade into the nearest guard. Warner was already in the middle of a large group disarming them. Charlie had stepped in front of the guns as the first shots were fired. The assembled crowd screamed as half his head was blown away. Metal and wires were exposed underneath and Sam swore that what was left of his face looked really mad as it charged the gunmen. John had blasted at least five in his first shot and Rachael was hacking and slashing in a way that should not have been possible in her dress,

Sam, though, he went right for the one in the mask. His blades were out and he was ready to skewer him for even mentioning his son's name. The masked man blocked his first strike with the electric baton. Sam almost got in another shot but the man was quicker. He stuck Sam with the prongs and sent him flying.

Then with lighting speed he plucked a woman from the audience and held the baton across her throat. Each Knight grimaced as they lowered their weapons. They'd cut his men down to about fifteen but that still left quite a few with guns at the ready.

"Now, I will ask again…" He kept his voice measured. "Norville Rogers."

Fred stepped forward, taking his cap off. "I'm Norville Rogers."

"Oh, that's nice." The masked man said as he handed his hostage off to one of his men and stepped up onto the stage. "I love a good Spartacus moment, but did you really think I came here without knowing what the young man looked like?" He swiped the prongs across Fred's chest, cutting a large gash and drawing blood. Fred collapsed to the stage and Daphne ran for him. "Now. One. Last. Time. Norville. Rogers."

Velma and Eric had been holding Shaggy down but now he finally broke free. He stood up, shaking, and walked to the masked man.

"I'm Norville Rogers."

"Yes" The man sounded pleased. "I rather think you are. My name is Jack Griffin, Doctor Jack Griffin, you knew my colleague Jonathan Jacobo. I'm here to finish his work."

"Raggy!" Scooby howled running at the man.

"Grab the dog!"

"No!" Velma reached her hands at the man's bandages. Her fingers closed around the gauze strips and tore them away. Beneath, there was nothing, just glasses floating in midair where the man's head should have been. The assembled crowd gasped and one or two may have even fainted. The suited man cocked his glasses to the side.

"Take the girl too! I'm sure we can find some use for her."

Beau hoisted Sam up off the floor, both scowling. Rachael, John and Warner joined them, strategically placing themselves between the attacking party and the audience.

"We'll stop you" Sam growled.

"I rather doubt that, release the hostage…" Griffin's man complied and tossed the woman back into the crowd. "Ravencroft!" He shouted at the empty air. "Take us home!"

Sam and Beau ran at them as a bright flash filled the room. The images of the remaining soldiers, Griffin, Shaggy, Scooby, and Velma disappeared into thin air.


	9. The Knights of Van Helsing

**Part 8: The Knights of Van Helsing**

"Listen everyone!" Fletcher yelled at the stunned crowd, flashing a badge. "Please remain calm, I'm John Fletcher with Interpol, those men were agents of the _Hand of Draco_, a radical group operating out of Eastern Europe. I'm sorry for the commotion, please return to your homes, you are safe, we have everything under control."

The crowd dispersed as though hypnotized. The only ones who stayed were the Joneses, the Blakes, the Dinkleys, and the Rogers. Fred had been bandaged up and leaned on Daphne as the rest of the town left. George Blake marched up to Fletcher.

"What was that John? I've known you since we were sixteen, and you're not with any damn Interpol."

Sam looked from Rachael to Beau to Fletcher. Eventually Rachael shrugged and nodded at him.

"We should show them. It's past time."

"Agreed" Sam said. "Can someone watch Madelyn and Maggie?"

"Fredrick and Moira can do it" George grimaced.

"We'll make sure there's extra protection around the house. We'll post officers and knights."

"Sam, what the hell are you talking about, where's our son?"

"It's time you saw my other job."

The group was led down toward Old Coolsville. Already they could see something was happening. Unfamiliar faces were lining the streets. Some were in blue hooded robes and some carried swords and daggers. Sam, Beau, and Warner all had their sleeves rolled up and the leather gauntlets where they had stored their knives before the fight were in plain view.

On his finger Sam wore a ring that nobody had ever seen before. Warner had one too. Beau had a charm around his neck, Fletcher a pocket watch, and Rachael a tattoo. All of them bore the same symbol, a V over an H.

Finally the group stopped outside an old, wrought iron gate. A house stood before them, dilapidated and crumbling. Two angel statues flanked the entrance. Fred and Daphne recognized it immediately; the Griffin House.

Fletcher waved his hand at the gate and it swung open like magic. As they entered, they saw two more figures in blue hooded robes standing sentinel.

"They look just like the one from the hospital." Katherine said in awe.

"That was me" Warner said as he scanned the air nervously, as though waiting for an attack.

"And in New York?" Fred grunted through the pain of his wound.

"That was me" Sam sighed.

Rachael opened the door and led them inside. The interior was much better kept, though still musty. They settled in the dining room, sitting around a large table. Sam had detached one of the knives from its housing and was digging it into the wood. Warner took off his ring and placed it in the center of the table.

"Do you recognize that symbol?"

"Yeah" Katherine gasped. "That's the symbol on Norville's ring."

"We've been looking into that. We suspect you had an ancestor in our order, and that the ring was passed down. That symbol, the V over the H, is the marker of our order in its current form. Over the centuries we've had many names and many symbols, it keeps us anonymous. The markers are enchanted to change when we do. The VH stands for Van Helsing. He was the man who led us during our last great offensive."

"Van Helsing is a character from a book." Daphne said indignantly.

"So is Doctor Jack Griffin, the Invisible Man, whom you just met." Another man said striding into the room. He was tall and lean, with slick black hair and a pencil mustache. He wore a black suit with a dark blue cloak draped over his shoulders.

"May I introduce our leader…" Warner said. "Vincent Van Ghoul."

Warner, Beau, Sam, and the Fletchers all bowed their heads in deference. Van Ghoul returned the gesture.

"Greetings"

"I don't understand" Kurt Dinkley interrupted. "What happened to our children?"

"They have been taken, taken by an evil we have sworn to combat. Rest assured they are safe, for the time being, he would not send such an entourage if he wished to simply kill them."

"I don't understand, who the hell are we talking about?" Skip Jones grunted.

"The greatest evil, the oldest, Griffin's master, Van Helsing's rival, the creature you would most likely know as Count Dracula."


	10. I Bid You Welcome

**"Transylvania 1887" from _Van Helsing_.**

**Part 9: I Bid you Welcome**

Shaggy, Scooby, and Velma blinked the light out of their eyes as the school faded away and a new locale was thrown into sharp relief. Leafless trees shook in the rain and howling wind. The sky was inky black. They were somewhere high up, at the peak of a mountain. Below they could see lights, a village maybe.

But in front of them was the most terrifying sight of all. It loomed high into the clouds. Great towers ended in pointed spires that seemed to beckon the lighting towards them. The wind whipped through the stonework creating the most excruciating sounds imaginable. Right in front of them was a set of massive wooden doors. Above the doors there were words inscribed; _Abandon hope all who enter, and prepare to pay him tribute, for you are at the house of the Dragon's Son._

The doors swung open and the three of them were pushed inside by the barrels of guns. Griffin had shed the last of his facial coverings and was now spreading his arms in a welcoming gesture as he led the way inside.

Standing just within the doors was a man who seemed to not be a man. His body was lean and he stood arching forward in a way that should not have been possible. His black hair was slick and hung down the sides of his face, coming to a sharp widow's peak atop his forehead. A thick black mustache and beard adorned his pointed chin. Angular eyebrows formed a V above severe red eyes. Down the right side of his face and across his right eye there was a long red scar. Blood red lips curved into a saccharine smile that barely revealed white, needle like, fangs.

Shaggy and Velma were forced to their knees in front of him. Scooby bared his teeth for a moment and in return the creature bared his, silencing him. He smiled down at Shaggy and held out his hand, sweeping it across the room.

"I bid you welcome" He said in a smooth eastern European accent. "Enter freely and of your will. I am your new host and master. I am Count Dracula."


	11. Paradise

**Part 10: Paradise**

"That's insane" Kurt Dinkley said as the group was led into a different room of the house. "We're talking about fictional characters."

"There is truth in fiction more often than you think." Van Ghoul said as he approached a large wardrobe in the sitting room. "For centuries members of our order have taken on the task of recording our encounters as fictional stories, Bram Stoker, Robert Stevenson, Herbert Wells, Mary Shelley. They hold a special honor among our ranks, covering our exploits by making them appear fictional while also preparing the world in case we ever do need to reveal ourselves. But I see you are still skeptical, so I offer you this final show of credentials."

Van Ghoul cast the doors of the wardrobe open. A cold wind hit them and everyone stepped back in shock, almost everyone. The so called Knights simply stood stone faced, like they had seen it all before.

Inside the wardrobe was an impossibility. It stretched far back into the wall, but perhaps stretched was not the right word. Rather, it opened like a door into a massive hall. Glittering torches lined walls and hung from chandeliers twenty feet up. Ornately carved wooden columns were arranged down the length of the chamber, each one painted red and inlaid with golden carvings.

Van Ghoul walked into the wardrobe, emerging in the marvelous other building. Apprehensively the others followed, a blast of cold air hitting them. Fred found himself wishing that he had worn a jacket as the sudden drop in temperature chewed at his wounded chest.

"C…cold in here"

"My apologies" Van Ghoul said. "The entrance hall is not as well… insulated, as the rest of the monastery."

"Monastery?" Daphne asked putting her arms around Fred for warmth. "What is this place?"

Van Ghoul cast his hands toward a set of large double doors at the end of the hall. They flew open at his command and another blast of air hit them, warm and comforting. A breeze fluttered into the hall carrying the scents of fresh Jasmine and Wolfsbane.

Beyond the doors was a sight almost as unbelievable as the hall in the wardrobe. A large balcony overlooked a luscious green garden. Temples and houses from at least fifty different cultures dotted the landscape. In the distance a waterfall thundered into a stream that lead into a lake in the middle of the fantastic cityscape. Even farther beyond that were snow capped mountain peaks rising high above the clouds.

Van Ghoul smiled for the first time since he had strode into the room. "Welcome to our home, the base of our order, the eternal city. Welcome to Shangri La."


	12. Full Disclosure

**"Ezio's Family" from _Assassin's Creed II_.**

**Part 11: Full Disclosure**

The tour through the city had been rushed. The purpose had simply been to prove what was being claimed. Now the group sat in a conference room, surprisingly modern amidst the ancient temples. Van Ghoul sat at the head of the table, John and Rachael on either side of him. The parents all sat at the other end, with Warner standing guard by the door, arms crossed. Fred and Daphne sat toward the middle of the table, between the two groups.

"Now that we have your attention I can more fully inform you of precisely what we are up against. The creature you know as Dracula has plagued our order since before my time…"

"What exactly do you mean _before your time_?" Daphne asked.

"The order goes back thousands of years. The changes in name and face protect our anonymity, especially when we get too well known. In the past we were known as the Argonauts, Knights of Camelot, League Sin Demon…"

"So you're like the Illuminati?" Fred asked, realizing just how much time he spent with Dell.

"Please" Fletcher chuckled. "The Illuminati have conspiracy theories about us."

"As I was saying…" Van Ghoul continued. "Our most recent name and symbol comes from the man who was responsible for our resurgence in the late nineteenth century. He led the charge against Dracula's cult, a charge that roughly approximated the novel that Bram Stoker wrote… with two key differences. One; Dracula and Van Helsing had fought before, indeed Dracula has plagued our order since its inception. Two; while in the novel Quincy Morris and Jonathan Harker are able to kill Dracula, real life played out slightly differently. They wounded him, drew blood from him. From that Van Helsing and Doctor John Seward went on to distill a formula that cured Mina Harker of the vampirism Dracula had infected her with. She and Jonathan lived a long happy life and eventually took over the order when Van Helsing passed on. They had even managed to kill one of Dracula's three brides in the attack but the creature himself was far from dead."

John Fletcher leaned forward in his chair. "You see, centuries of research by the members who came before us indicates that the man, Voivode Dracula, Vlad the Impaler, the actual historical Wallachian prince, was only the one in a series of hosts for the Dracula entity. The actual spirit of Dracula has been recorded long before the man. Ancient documents indicate that it is one of several evil spirits or demons that were locked away in chest by the earliest members of our order. This Chest of Demons has been lost for centuries."

"Well then how do you know it exists?" Fred asked.

"Because we found these." Fletcher pulled three objects from his pocket. Two were golden rings and one was a small plate of gold about the size of the two put together. "These were recovered from a few sites around the world, one had been in government storage at Cape Casem since the fifties, one was sealed inside an ancient artifact, the Miller Stone, and one was recovered in a chest discovered by James Hawkins and Anne Bonny in the 1700's and retrieved by us not too long ago."

"So, what are they?"

"Keys… or pieces of a key. The legend of the chest states that the ones who built it, who imprisoned the demons, made a key for the chest, a key that only they could wield. The split it into seven pieces to be used by eight of their number. One would take the assembled key and cast a demon into the chest while the others kept the imprisoned demons at bay until the chest was sealed again."

"What do you mean only they could wield it, who were they?"

"Ah…" Fletcher grinned. "Who here has ever heard of Faoladh?"

Everyone looked on in confusion. Then Katherine, who had been silent the entire time, eyes red with tears looked up at Fletcher.

"Irish werewolves. It's a local legend in the part of Ireland my family is from. They were defenders of the community, two were selected every seven years to join their ranks."

"Yes Misses Rogers, and they were very real. They were the founders of our order, the creators of the chest and the keys."

"What do you mean 'were'" Fred leaned forward. "Dracula's real, the Invisible Man and Treasure Island are real but werewolves aren't around anymore?"

"No" Van Ghoul answered severely. "They are not."

"What happened to them?"

"Young man, if you were Dracula, and there was one creature in all the world that could kill you, one creature who could lock you away forever, what would you do to them?"

Daphne put a hand to her mouth as the realization hit her. "He killed them."

"Not just the Faoladh" Fletcher said, his grin gone. "There were two types of werewolves. Faoladh, also called Benandanti, Hounds of God, Berserkers, good werewolves, and then you had your classic movie monster, completely animalistic, not at all in control of themselves when they transform. Dracula instituted a major offensive in the early twentieth century. He wiped them out indiscriminately."

"Listen, this still doesn't explain what they wanted with my son, I suppose you know though, don't you Sam?" Kate asked bitterly.

Hurt crept on to Sam's face. He was about to respond when Van Ghoul looked toward Kate, hands clasped together, and spoke.

"Your husband had no knowledge of this. I regret to say that I had been keeping certain things from him since I discovered them. It was for his own protection and that of your family, I believed that the less you knew, the better. I…"

"Wait" Sam interrupted. "You knew they were going after my son! You told me there was nothing to worry about, that I had to keep an eye on the Wilcox twins and Madelyn!"

"Wait" Kurt Dinkley interjected. "Does this have something to do with what happened back in March, those people that took out daughter?"

"Those people…" Fletcher began uncertainly, as though what he was about to say was embarrassing. "Dracula's people were looking for witches."

"Witches?"

"There is a specific group of people, like Faoladh they're born with an innate magical ability. In this instance it's a control over magical energies. These energies are all around us, it's what allows psychics to happen. Fortune tellers, the real ones anyway, use this energy to make calculated predictions, not always correct, but usually close. They can also be used to generate fire, ice, control elements, like you saw me do during the fight. If you've got enough of us you can do something really spectacular like that portal you stepped through back in Coolsville that brought you here, or the teleportation spell that Griffin used to escape."

"Wait" Fred said staring dead at Fletcher. "You said _us_."

"Right, well, I'm one, Vincent, another member of our order by the name of Merlyn, not that one…" He held his hand up preemptively. "King Arthur's Merlin is long dead, we're long lived but a few centuries is pushing it even for us. After Merlyn there are a few trainees."

"And you're saying that our Madelyn is also one of you?"

"Yes, though she may not know it, we would have contacted you if she or Griffin found out, but that wasn't the case. The same goes for the Wilcox sisters and Sally McKnight who was also abducted a few days ago."

"I hate to put the focus back on my family" Kate said. "But why did they take my son?"

"Katherine" Van Ghoul looked her in the eyes. "Have you ever felt so compelled to act, to help someone, to fight, that you could swear an animal was clawing away at your insides? Have you ever seen such behavior in your children?"

"What does…"

"Yeah" Fred interrupted. "Yeah, Shaggy's done that, back in New York, in California, half a dozen times."

"Yes" Kate nodded solemnly.

"A Faoladh… gene," Fletcher shrugged, "is hereditary. But, it doesn't automatically make you a werewolf. What they're born with is an innate sense to fight for those under their care, to heal the wounded, and to seek out mates with those same qualities. But the bite of a full Faoladh is required to initiate a transformation, and we believe, to open the chest."

"Wait a minute…" Kate stuttered. "What a minute, are you saying that I'm a… that my children are…"

"Werewolves" Van Ghoul finished. "Which is precisely why Dracula took your son, he is seeking the chest and the pieces of the key, once that is done he will have young Norville open it and he will absorb the powers of the other demons."

"But you said they needed a bite, a transformation to open the chest?"

"When Jonathan Jacobo took him two years ago, he was working on a way to catalyze the transformation without the need for a bite. They tracked the latent lycanthropic energy to Coolsville, found him, and now they've taken him to finish what Jacobo started."

"Then we need to rescue him!" Sam pounded his hand on the table.

"And we will" Van Ghoul said. "But a full assault on Dracula's fortress is suicide. We must find the remaining pieces of the key and the chest before Dracula does. Until then they will be kept alive, which is more than can be said for most of Dracula's prisoners. He needs young Norville."

"And Shaggy would never cooperate if Velma or Scooby were hurt." Fred concluded. "Then you're going after these things, we're coming with you." Daphne nodded her agreement. "And then you're helping us get them back, suicide mission or not."

"Those terms are satisfactory" Van Ghoul nodded. "We've tracked the first piece to France, you leave at Dawn."


	13. It's Alive!

**"Die Forelle" from _Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows _(Yes, specifically that version).  
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**Part 12: It's Alive!**

Shaggy was hoisted to his feet and led deeper into the castle. He could hear Velma and Scooby struggling behind him. The creature that called itself Dracula glided in front of him with Griffin at his side.

The two men pulling Shaggy along by his arms were cold as ice. When he looked into their faces he immediately wanted to throw up. Their skin was waxy and decaying. Their eyes were dead and their lips were sewn shut. 'What the hell?' He thought groggily.

Griffin and Dracula stopped in front of an oak door. Griffin opened it and Shaggy was led inside. Behind him Griffin bid Dracula farewell and shut the door. Shaggy gulped as he lost sight of Velma and Scooby.

He was pushed into a chair in the middle of the room. Shaggy, looking down at the swivel attached to the base, briefly thought of a barber's chair and had the ridiculous notion that he might be getting a haircut.

The undead guards pushed him into the chair and strapped him down. Now that he was sitting he noticed the bright ceiling lamp that illuminated the dank room. He squinted at it, past the glare and noticed a glass window set just below the ceiling. He could see Dracula sitting there with more guards. Velma and Scooby were next to him, fearfully watching with rifles pointed at them.

"Welcome ladies and gentlemen" Griffin said in his raspy voice. "Today, we finish the work begun two years ago by the esteemed Jonathan Jacobo."

Shaggy looked where Griffin was pointing at had to suppress a scream, if only to keep Velma and Scooby calm. There was Jacobo, in the same surgical scrubs that Griffin was now donning. Next to him was another man, skinny, with short brown hair and small Victorian sideburns. Unlike Jacobo who was leering expectantly. This man looked like he would rather be anywhere else.

"Thank you" Jacobo bowed. "But it was Doctor Griffin's pioneering work that is really allowing this to happen."

"Thank _you _Doctor" Griffin said, and the corners of his surgical mask perked up like his invisible mouth was smiling underneath. "Today, we look in the face of nature and say no, today we bring a creature back from extinction itself. Where once a bite was needed to catalyze the transformation, I soon shall present to you the first artificially created… _werewolf_."

Shaggy struggled as he was strapped down by the arms and feet. Griffin waved his hand at Jacobo and the man lowered the needle on an ancient gramophone in the corner. Immediately a somewhat peppy German opera began playing and Griffin sang along as he advanced on Shaggy syringe in hand.

"You'll see…" Griffin began. "…the transformation will begin immediately once I inject the first batch of formula."

Shaggy finally let loose a scream as Griffin jammed the needle into his neck. He felt a burning in his veins and he became aware of a tremendous pressure building in his head. There was a crack and Shaggy howled again as he felt his teeth breaking and reforming, sharpening into canine fangs.

"The process will be extremely painful." Griffin continued. "But well worth the end result." He took another needle from Jacobo and jammed it into Shaggy's arm.

"GAAAHHHH!"

Shaggy's fingers began breaking. He could feel his nails falling out and growing back in, sharper. As his bones reset he instinctively flexed his hands and felt the strange new nails going in and out.

"The transformation is radical. Not just his bones and teeth change, soon his inner ears and eyes will begin morphing to suit more… _lupine _purposes."

Shaggy felt his eyes burn and his ears ache. Every sound in the castle was suddenly thrown into sharp focus. He could hear water dripping and feet shuffling along dusty stone. He could hear screaming and grunting and added his own to the mix as a fresh wave of pain surged through his entire body.

"Griffin that's enough!" The hesitant man yelled, angrily advancing.

Griffin pulled a small black box with a button in the center out of his coat. "Uh, uh, uh" He waved the object in front of the man's face. "I don't think you want to do that."

The man backed away as Griffin took a third syringe and held it up with relish. Dracula smiled in the balcony and Jacobo let out a giggle of delight.

"Do it" he smiled.

"Now this one," Griffin held the syringe up for his audience to see, "this one is going to be very fun. Now that his bones have set and his ears have reformed, it's time to give the final catalyst, to push the transformation into overdrive. In a normal werewolf this final push takes hours. The body needs time to adapt, but I have found a way to speed up the process into a few agonizing minutes."

Velma shrieked as he stuck Shaggy with last needle, plunging it straight into his chest. Shaggy felt his veins burn again. His body writhed his agony and he struggled against his bonds. He let loose another scream but this one turned into a howl as he felt his throat burn, his vocal cords shift. His eyes began to water and soon his was nearly blind.

"GGGGGAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!"

Griffin smiled and backed away, admiring his work. Jacobo did the same and the third man looked away, unable to bear what was happening. Finally the wave of pain subsided. Shaggy felt his insides give way and he lost whatever food he had taken down that day. In defeat and exhaustion he hung his head down and just before he lost consciousness felt the guards hoist him out of the chair.

"You bastard" He heard the reluctant one say. Then everything went black.


	14. Wall of the Fallen

****"Ezio's Family" from _Assassin's Creed II _(Yep, again).****

**Part 13: Wall of the Fallen**

Sam spotted Kate looking over a balcony at the expanse of Shangri-La. He couldn't blame her. When he had first been allowed inside the city he had looked across it for weeks. He was somewhat surprised, though, that she was still here in the first place.

The portal in the wardrobe was still open. Van Ghoul had moved troops into the town. The combined magic of Fletcher, Merlyn, and Van Ghoul himself kept the people from asking too many questions. They were aware that something was wrong, but the enchantments kept them from realizing that robed warriors and invisible men were anything out of the ordinary.

At any rate, he had expected Kate to be back in town. He had expected her to never want to see him again.

"I know you're there Sam" She said without looking back at him. "You can stop lingering."

"I just wanted to let you know that Moira and Fredrick called to let us know Maggie's okay. She's scared though. She wants to see you."

"What about you?" Kate said coldly.

"Kate I…"

"How long?"

"What?"

"How long have you been with these people?"

Sam sighed. "Since before I met you. You remember when we met, you were backpacking across Europe and you saw me in that pub, it was about two years before that. Beau and I both were recruited at the same time."

"So that story you told me, about how you helped bust up a drug operation in Louisiana and that you and Beau went into business as private investigators after that? What that a lie?"

"Zombies" Sam said leaning on the balcony next to her. "The island was filled with zombies and cat creatures and instead of becoming PI's we became knights."

"That's insane."

"Yeah, it was. Kate you have to understand I would have told you, but we are sworn to secrecy and it's to protect you and Maggie and Norville just as much as it protects the order and the creatures who depend on us."

"Creatures?"

"This is a much bigger world than you ever knew Kate. Let me show you something."

He led her into the monastery and to a large room filled with lit candles. The wall was black marble and every surface was inscribed with names. Sam hung his head reverently as he entered.

"What is this place?"

"The memorial to Knights who gave their lives for the order, you'll find some famous names here, both real and names you used to think were fictional. Some names you probably won't recognize."

Kate leaned in closer to the shiny stone. She did indeed recognize some of the names; _Quincy Morris, Mary Read, Lucy Westenra, Henry Jekyll, Joan d' Arc, Nikola Tesla, Eric Weiss, Peter Van Ghoul, Christopher Vincent_.

"This is… why are you showing me this?"

"Because I want you to know how big this is. Every name here is someone who believed in our cause, someone who fought, not just for the order, but for the rest of the world. We protect the world from things that it can't handle knowing and we protect the unknown from a world that can't handle them. Every time someone doesn't kill a Sasquatch or the Loch Ness Monster, every time some lost hiker isn't ripped to shreds, or some haunting just stops, that's us."


	15. House Call

**Part 14: House Call**

Shaggy's eyes drifted open. He had just had the most horrible nightmare. But now he was back in… this wasn't his bed. Dark green sheets twisted as he sat upright; staring at a canopy he knew his bed didn't have. The walls of the room were plastered with dull green wallpaper, the door was heavy wood.

"Shaggy" He heard someone squeak.

He turned to see Velma and Scooby huddled in the corner. Velma gave a shudder as he looked at her.

"Like, what's wrong?"

Slowly she stood up and crossed the room towards him, Scooby at her heels. She reached a hand out to his face and for the first time since waking up he became aware of a distinct bristling across his skin. He looked down at his hands and nearly choked as he beheld clawed fingers covered in dark brown fur. His gaze drifted back up to Velma who still had her eyes locked on him.

"I don't know" She said.

"Shaggy?" He heard from below. He looked down but only saw Scooby.

"Who said that?"

"Me idiot." Scooby responded.

Shaggy backed away in the bed slightly. Scooby's eyes went wide and he in turn backed away.

"You're talking normal." He barked.

"Like, whaduhyuhmean?" He blurted out. "I always talk normal, you…"

"Scooby's talking the way he always does Shaggy" Velma said. "I think, whatever they did to you…"

"Doctor" Someone called from the other side of the door. "This is the doctor, can I come in?"

"Hell no" Velma yelled back.

"I'm not here to hurt you. I want to check up on the boy, make sure Griffin didn't do any permanent damage. Look you have my utmost assurance that I mean you no harm and that the lad could probably tear me to shreds if he wanted to."

Velma pulled a candlestick off the end table and carefully opened the door. As the visitor entered she brought the tin stick down toward him. Without looking up he caught the weapon and plucked it from her grasp, carefully setting it down on a table beside the door.

As he stepped into the light all three of them recoiled slightly. It was the man from the lab, the hesitant one. Now he was dressed in a jacket and waistcoat. Velma noticed with some suspicion that the collar on his jacket was pulled up high.

"Like, what do you want?"

"Well first off to apologize though I don't expect to be forgiven… I could never hope for such a thing." He added under his breath. "Second and by way of apology I wish to help you recover from Griffin's experimentation. Unfortunately I cannot reverse it, but I can tend to you wounds."

"What did they do to him?"

"You were at the presentation Miss. You saw. He needs a werewolf to open something for him, a chest. He doesn't have it yet, but when he does… well, I would suggest escape if it were possible."

"That's, that's… like that's impossible" Shaggy stuttered.

Anticipating this, the man held a small mirror up to Shaggy's face. Looking back at him was still his own face, but the ears were pointed, canine fangs protruded from his gums and his skin was covered by the same dark fur.

The man had just begun tending to Shaggy's wounds when Velma grabbed his hand. There was a momentary flash of anger in the man's eyes but it died quickly.

"I've met Dracula today…"

"Yesterday" The man corrected.

"Yesterday, Dracula, and the Invisible Man, Griffin the Invisible Man from HG Wells' book. You're a doctor, and they called you Henry. What I'm thinking is probably counter intuitive but tell me, Henry what?

The man sighed. "Is it really important?"

"Henry what?"

"…Henry Jekyll."

Velma released his arm and stepped back in shock. "Are you, have you…."

"Like is the other guy gonna show up?"

Jekyll pulled his collar down and showed them his neck where a small metal disk was affixed to his skin. A capsule of liquid was set in the middle of it.

"This is the potion that lets Edward out. I have not had control of it for many years. Griffin holds the remote that activates it, but Dracula has his leash. I serve them under the threat that if I disobey he unleashes Edward on the village below. I am permitted to serve as village doctor in my spare time."

"What is this place?"

"Transylvania, or, what's left of it. Dracula took a small piece of the land here, the bit where his castle stood and the village below and had it magically cut off from the world. The only way within the borders is by magic."

"So, we're trapped?"

"Thus far, now Dracula will want you for the games soon, so I would suggest you rest up."

"Like, what Games?"

"You'll see, and I suggest you begin trusting me, because you shall definitely require a doctor and it's me… or Griffin."


	16. Go Forth

**Part 15: Go Forth**

Fred and Daphne stood in front of a large nineteen forties propeller plane sitting in a hangar in the Knights' base. They had already bid farewell to their families. Though their parents were not keen to let them go, they knew they couldn't stop them. They were eighteen and more importantly they were determined.

Daphne had the Kukri she had taken in Egypt strapped to her waist and her Bali Song in her pocket. She had forgone her usual attire for a purple t-shirt and jeans. Heavy boots protected her feet and a purple coat protected her from the cold. It was tied off at the waist almost forming a skirt. Lastly a green bandana kept her neck warm as she stood in the chilly hangar.

Fred was also dressed warmly and ready for battle. A heavy blue button up shirt, white sweater and his own orange bandana kept him safe from the elements. He also had his pocket knife on him, and his usual assortment of odds and ends stuffed in his pocket. As they had left Mister Rogers had even given him an antique revolver.

"I'm not a big gun person" Fred had said, trying to push it away.

"You're gonna see things, probably fight things that are tougher than you're used to. This is an heirloom of the order, specially fitted for silver rounds. Finding those keys is my son's only hope, please, just to give _him _fighting chance."

Fred had taken it and the box of ammunition and stuffed them in the duffle that he and Daphne were sharing on the plane. They had had no idea how long they would be gone, only that their first destination was France and that the Fletchers and Van Ghoul would be going with them.

"Spent a lot of time in France Lady Blake?" Fred asked as they boarded.

"Some" She answered. "Fred what the hell are we doing?"

"Leaving home, making our own way, you know, what you're supposed to do after High School."

The rest of the party boarded the jet. Rachael sat in the cockpit while Van Ghoul and Fletcher pressed their hands against a small black orb at the back of the plane.

"The plane is powered by a portal created by the artifact there." Rachael explained over the intercom. "They put magic into it and we jet off to wherever we want to go in seconds.

The engines began to hum and Fred and Daphne locked hands. Both of them peered out the window at the mountains outside and although they had left Coolsville a continent away the moment they had stepped through the wardrobe both still bade it goodbye as the craft soared skyward.


	17. The Opera House

**"To the Opera" from _Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows_.**

**Part 16: The Opera House**

The plane touched down just outside of Paris late at night. The five travelers disembarked and began to walk the streets of the beautiful city. The shops that were still open bathed everything in golden light. But their destination was something just a slight bit grander.

Light poured from the main doors of the Paris Opera House. Men in tuxedos and women in dresses were milling about the main hall, waiting for their show. Fred and Daphne looked down at their own t-shirts and jeans. Noticing this, Fletcher snapped his fingers at the air.

A moment later, Fred looked down at a black tuxedo and bowtie. Next to him Daphne was wearing a black dress. The funny thing was that he could still feel cotton and denim.

"Simple glamour spell" Fletcher said as they continued walking. You're still in your clothes, you just look a bit nicer.

Daphne reached around to the back of her dress and patted it confidently. Fred took a moment to realize that she was making sure her knife was still resting in its now invisible back pocket.

"So what are we looking for?" Fred said.

"Ever read _Phantom of the Opera_?" Rachael asked. Fred and Daphne nodded. Both were total monster geeks and had worked through _Phantom _in about half a week. "Well, add that to the list of books that were actually cover ups. Back in the day, Dracula really did have a disfigured inventor by the name of Erik working for him from a base beneath the Opera House. He came to our attention when he tried to abduct…"

"Christine" Daphne interrupted. "We know the story. But I've been here before and my family has been coming here since it was built so I have it on good authority that there is no underground lake and certainly no maniac's lab."

"And there's no such thing as magic" Fletcher said sarcastically. "Erik was studying a piece of the key probably trying to find a way to duplicate it… really a stupid idea." Fletcher added. "Either way, after our agents stopped him, the key was left here."

"Now that seems like a dumb idea." Fred rolled his eyes.

They had just passed into the main room of the Opera House. Fred now kept a hand resting on his pocket just in case. Patrons swirled around and he was straining to recognize any of them, wondering if Dracula had as many familiar faces under his control as this Van Ghoul person did.

"It would have been too dangerous" Fletcher said, leading them towards a side door. "At that point in history we had the chest safe in our hands, and keeping the chest and the key close together is not a good idea. They say the demons inside start asking to be let out."

"So ignore them."

"Demons wouldn't be demons if they could just be ignored."

Rachael proposed they split up, a plan that Fred and Daphne reluctantly agreed to. Daphne went with Rachel toward the _Ghost Box _Erik had set up to maintain his false spiritual presence. People never changed, Daphne reflected. Hundreds of years and people where still pretending to be monsters to fuel their own goals.

Fred went off with Fletcher, down into the basement. As they descended, Fletcher created a small glowing orb in the palm of his hand. The light made the rooms and halls they passed through impossibly bright, brighter than even a flashlight could have.

As they moved along, Fred noticed a brighter glowing seemingly dripping from the man's eyes. For a moment, Fred though Fletcher was crying, and then he realized they were not tears falling from his eyes, but small flames licking at his sockets. Fred had the sudden and profound revelation that this man was not human, no matter how much he looked it. He remembered the mention of how long lived witches were, and briefly wondered just how old Fletcher and Van Ghoul were, and how old Madelyn and Thorn would become.

The basement grew colder the farther down they got. Fred had begun to take in the distinct sound of rushing water. They came to a stop at a wall and Fletcher kneeled down and pressed his hand against the stone, muttering and incantation in some ancient language… on second thought Fred realized, it was French. Brighter flames licked at his eyes. The wall rumbled and eventually melted away, revealing a small room.

Work benches and scrap metal adorned almost every surface. At the opposite end from the door was a small wooden dock half collapsed into a shallow lake. Just next to that was a large pipe organ.

"This is?" Fred could not bring himself to finish the question as he ran his hand over the keys of the organ.

"Erik's home" Fletcher nodded. "Don't be too loud. His spirit might still be lurking."

Fred gave an amused smirk that melted away when he realized that Fletcher had been speaking with utter sincerity. Fred gulped and pulled the knife from his pocket, not flipping it open yet and not entirely sure what it would do against a ghost.

"So what are we looking for?"

"I'd say this" A British voice sneered from the doorway.

Fred and Fletcher turned to face a tall man, about Fletcher's height but broader. He had dark black hair tied into a long ponytail and a matching goatee. Rectangular glasses where perched over a pointed nose and covered iris-less black eyes. He held a small golden ring between his fingers and grinned wickedly at it.

"Ravencroft" Fletcher growled.

"The dead author…" Fred trailed off, figuring that was not the most pressing question. "Bad guy?" Fletcher nodded. "Good" Fred flicked open his knife.

"Oh, put that away before you hurt yourself." Ravencroft said, a white shadow passing across his face.

The knife suddenly burned hot in Fred's hand and he dropped it. Ravencroft stepped further into the room, holding his hand up toward them. His black eyes began to glow white and the room started to vibrate. Fred now wished he had brought the revolver Detective Rogers had given him.

Next to him Fletcher's eyes began to glow orange, brighter and larger flames licked away at his glasses, reducing them to ash in a matter of seconds.

"Don't test me Ben" Fletcher growled through gritted teeth. His fists were clenched now and more flames were slipping through his fingers. "Hand over the key."

"Oh that's adorable" Ravencroft sneered, a faint feminine tinge edging into his voice. Again the strange white shadow passed in front of his face. An image like a hologram imposed itself upon him, that of a woman. "He thinks he's talking to Ben. Ben, the second rate mystic who thought he could acquire power by summoning a dead ancestor. Learn your lesson Fletcher, the handsome lad is right, Ben Ravencroft is dead, you're talking to Sarah."

Fred was not entirely sure what was being discussed. As far as he knew, Benjamin Ravencroft had been a British horror author whose work he and Velma both greatly admired. He had died during a freak storm in the New England town of… Oakhaven. Suddenly it all made a bit more sense, not the ghost woman or the undead author, but at least the connection to crazytown.

Fred raised his hand sheepishly. "Can I say something?"

Fletcher and Ravencroft both shot him a look like he had really just interrupted a private conversation. Both shrugged in unison and held out a hand indicating their allowance of Fred's interruption.

"Right" Fred clapped his hands together. "So, the Phantom's actual workshop, pretty exciting. You know I always admired him a little, such a mechanical genius…" Fred had subtly inched away from his previous position, stepping closer and closer to the organ. "Of course, back in the day the things he designed were so revolutionary that they could afford to lack a little subtlety." Fred drummed his fingers on the keys of the organ, churning out a snippet of music.

Immediately the floor beneath Ravencroft opened up and he tumbled down. Fletcher shot a hand toward him and the key fragment flew through the air. Fletcher caught it as the doors closed over Ravencroft.

"Thank you Fredrick. That was inspired."

"What can I say, traps are my specialty." Fred shrugged.

"How did you know which keys to play?"

"A snippet from _Don Giovani_, Erik's favorite. I just got lucky I played the right bit."

"Well" Fletcher pocketed the ring grinning. "That was easy."

Just as Fletcher finished talking a symphony of screaming sounded from up above. Fred scooped up his knife and he and Fletcher ran up into the atrium. Patrons were running terrified from the performance hall, screaming about a dead man with an axe. It was the kind of thing that should rightfully send someone running for the hills, so naturally Fred and Fletcher ran right for it.

Up on stage Daphne and Rachael stood face to face with a tall man in a brown duster and wide brimmed hat. He currently had a large scimitar stuck in his back that seemed to largely not bother him. In his right hand he swung a large wood axe.

Without missing a beat Fletcher cast his hand out toward the man and shot a column of flame at him. The man dodged, but not quite fast enough. The edge of Fletcher's plume of fire grazed the man's face, singeing away the flesh and exposing muscle. Fred was taken aback at the brutality especially from a man who had seemed so peaceful back in Scotland. Then Fred realized what was at stake for Fletcher, this man, whoever he was, had attacked Rachael and he was reminded just what he would do to anyone who came at Daphne,

The man with the axe barely flinched though, he just smiled, proudly baring the red and black mesh that was his own charred jaw muscle. Fred nearly puked as he saw the remaining skin stretch its way across the wound and eventually close around it, forming a very complete and wicked grin.

He charged at the girls with the axe, crouching low and sweeping the blade from side to side. Rachael sprung like a jungle cat, vaulting over the man and pulling the scimitar out of his back. Sand poured from the wound before it closed up like the one on his face. He ignored her, going straight for Daphne.

Without thinking, Fred ran, tackling the man. The hat fell away from his head, revealing a face that Fred was surprised he recognized.

"The ranger from the mountain" Fred gasped, having a sudden flash back to the gang's adventure in the Redwoods.

"You're supposed to be dead!" Fletcher shouted as he wound up another fireball.

The man, Knudsen, if Fred remembered correctly, kicked him away and stood up.

"Ain't I just?" He smiled as he moved the axe toward Fred.

Daphne sprang into action, whipping out her Bali Song and swiping it across the man's face. He smiled as the wound closed, right up until the point Rachael put the scimitar back through his spine. Fred supposed that even if he could stand pain and heal, a sword to spine was still fairly debilitating.

"Out of the way!" Fletcher roared as he held out his hand. Fred and Daphne backed off as Fletcher let a blast of frigid air loose at the man. In a second he was encased in a block of ice. Looking back at Fletcher, Fred noticed that his eyes had gone from flaming orange to solid, icy blue, as blank as Ravencroft's had been.

"What the hell have we gotten ourselves into?" Fred mused as they exited the theatre and began the trek back to their plane.


	18. Showdown in the Town Square

**Part 17: Showdown in Town Square**

Over the past few days, Shaggy, Velma, and Scooby had grown accustomed, as much as possible, to their new surroundings. Shaggy had taken the better part of two days and nights growing used to his new senses. He had tossed and turned and howled as the serum in his body made its final adjustments. All that time Velma had acted as nurse, with Scooby as an interpreter.

On the third day, Jekyll, having noticed Velma's aptitude for medical work, had offered to take her down into the village to be his assistant at the clinic. She had insisted that Shaggy and Scooby come with her, a request she was sure would be refused, but to her great surprise, was not.

"And where do you suppose you could run" Jekyll offered by way of explanation as they walked down the path to the village. "I told you, there's no way in or out of Transylvania. You're just as much a prisoner out here as you were back in the castle."

The village itself was a strange mishmash of different eras. The townspeople, all humans by the looks of them, wore the clothes of Victorian peasants, with a few small affectations that suggested that periodic resupplies had taken place throughout history, stopping around the seventies judging the prevalence of bright colors and scarves. The people themselves looked on as though they had lost any sense of hope long ago.

"I still don't get it" Velma said, a heck of a confession for her. "What's stopping them from leaving?"

"Magic" Jekyll answered as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"There's no such thing" Velma shook her head.

"You've met Dracula, Griffin, and myself, do you deny that?"

"I was stressed out the other night, so no, I do not think that you really are fictional characters. That man was wearing some kind of stealth suit and Shaggy was the subject of some kind of genetic experiment." Velma stamped her foot to put emphasis to her words.

Jekyll just smirked. "Boy are you in for a shock."

"Hey, Doctor Jekyll dude" Shaggy said sheepishly. "Is there, like, anywhere to eat around here?" Scooby barked in agreement.

Velma smiled, some things just refused to change.

"Let me just check in at the clinic, then we'll head down to the pub and get you some food."

They stopped at a two story building, one of the few semi-modern buildings (meaning strictly Victorian) in the otherwise rustic town. Jekyll knocked at the door and waited a moment until it creaked open. In the doorway stood the largest man they had ever seen. He was easily seven feet tall if not more and covered stitches. His skin was a sickly yellowish grey and his disheveled neck length hair was jet black, framing a gaunt face with deep sunken grey eyes.

Shaggy yelped and cowered behind Scooby, who backed away in turn. Velma suppressed a small squeak, but held her ground. Jekyll on the other hand walked right past the behemoth and hung his coat like it was another day at the office.

"Morning Adam" He greeted. "Any calls?"

"Misses Jorgenson was in complaining about her knee again." The creature answered in a surprisingly smooth voice, German or Swiss with a hint of French.

"Well, perhaps if she would stay off of it" Jekyll groaned.

"You know as well as I that that's not an option. Dracula demands tribute from the farmers. They need to make their quota."

Jekyll nodded solemnly. "Fine, call her in and see if there's any way we can take over in the fields for her. Oh and Adam, would you mind showing the new ones around, the girl is going to be helping us around here."

Adam nodded and turned to Shaggy, Velma, and Scooby. "Good God that is the scrawniest werewolf I've ever seen" He bellowed. "What's Dracula going to do with that?" Shaggy and Scooby continued to cower behind Velma. Velma, herself, stood in quiet contemplation, certain that the gargantuan man seemed familiar. "Well come inside, it'll be raining soon by the looks of it, might get some lighting too."

Velma's eyes lit up. "Jinkies… Adam…" She stuttered.

"Yes?"

"Are you… I mean, you can't be…"

"Yes, he's Frankenstein's monster, try to keep up" Jekyll called from the next room.

"Rankenstein's ronster" Scooby barked, voice quivering.

"Well, I prefer Adam, but yes."

"But, like, you can talk, and you don't have bolts in your neck."

Adam pinched the bridge of his nose. "Two hundred years and they still only think of that one."

After introductions, Jekyll took Velma into the lab to show her the equipment she would be handling. He explained how, as the most scientifically inclined people in the area, aside from Griffin and Jacobo, he and the Frankensteins were responsible for keeping the townspeople in good working order.

Shaggy sat in the back room with Scooby, looking down at his new claws. Scooby circled his legs for a moment before jumping up onto the chair next to him. He looked at Shaggy for a long while, regarding every tiny detail of his new face.

"You look better" He grinned.

Shaggy chuckled and shook his head. "It's so weird to hear you talking like that. Like, I've gotten so used to the just working out what you're saying, I never considered what you'd sound like when you talked like a…" Shaggy cut off.

"It's okay" Scooby grinned accusingly. "Say it, say _normal human_."

"Well" Shaggy sighed. "Like clearly I'm not that anymore."

"Normal" Scooby scoffed. "Your best friend is a dog, you solve mysteries for fun, and you can eat more than the average human and still maintain your figure, what's normal?"

The two friends laughed together, brothers, finally able to speak on the same terms.

In the next room Velma was looking over Jekyll's surgical equipment. The man himself was watering a set of plants in the windowsill, seemingly ignoring her.

"If you're really _the _Doctor Jekyll…"

"I am" He said without looking up.

"Then why are you still alive, not just you, but Griffin, Dracula, Adam, you all died at the end of your books."

"Well" Jekyll finally looked up. "Dracula has his soldiers, and the forces of good have theirs. Those books were records and cover ups and occasionally they had to mess the details to misinform the enemy. As for why we're still alive after all these years, you can attribute that to Adam's father. Contrary to popular belief, Victor Frankenstein had to make many spectacular breakthroughs in order to create his masterpiece. One of which allowed Dracula to extend the lives of his servants as long as he wished… or rather, wishes. It is the reason that I am still here and not out helping to fight him, or serving divine penance for my sins in the land beyond."

"Let's say that I do believe that you're really Henry Jekyll for a moment, hypothetically. Wasn't the point behind your work to purge your sins?"

"Well, to purge my darker impulses, but instead I gave them free reign. It was the primary reason that Dracula insisted that I help with the boy's…"

"Shaggy" Velma interrupted sternly.

"What?"

"His name is Shaggy, use it."

"Shaggy's procedure" He continued. "At its heart, lycanthropy is about unleashing one's wilder impulses. Your friend… Shaggy, is very unique, he is a very special kind of werewolf, the kind that Dracula fears. That gives him power here, but you and the hound give Dracula power over him. Stick close together my dear."

"I don't believe in magic" Velma said, he voice quivering slightly. "I don't believe in monsters, vampires, werewolves, it's not real."

"Belief has nothing to do with it child, it's not Tinkerbell. You seem to think yourself a scientist, so accept the evidence that you see before your very eyes."

Jekyll was suddenly distracted by a loud metal clanking out in the road. He opened the shutters slightly and his face twisted in horror. Outside a seven foot tall suit of pitch black armor walked down the street, held together not by a human body, but an ethereal green mist. Two green eyes glowed from beneath the helmet, the indicators of a face. A blood red plume was affixed to the helmet's top. The creature clenched a large black sword in its gauntlet.

In front of it a man and a young boy cowered in the muddy street. The armored wraith stepped up to them.

"For the crime of refusal to pay tribute to his lordship, you have been sentenced to death" It said in a voice that rumbled from the very depths of the metal plates.

"God no" Jekyll snapped. "Get down, get away!" He shouted to no one in particular.

Velma watched the scene in horror as the sword was raised. The metal arm brought it down in one swift motion, cleaving into… empty air. Velma did a double take. The people were gone, whisked to the side with inhuman speed by… by Shaggy.

Shaggy bared his fangs and let loose a howl that reverberated throughout the town. He held his arms to his sides and Velma saw the newly grown claws slowly push forth from his fingers. He crouched down on all fours and bounded at the creature. Just before running into it he leapt and wrapped his clawed hands around the helmet, using his momentum to push the behemoth into the dirt.

The armored spirit fell onto one knee before picking itself back up and turning to Shaggy. Its eyes now burned a brighter green and wisps of smoke poured from them. Shaggy let out a low growl and then charged again, this time on two feet. He gripped the shoulders of the wraith and pulled it down, bringing his knee up into the metal chest. There was a sound of crunching metal and when the armor staggered back, Velma could see a large round dent in it.

The wraith clutched at the dent and looked up at Shaggy. "What are you?"

Shaggy inhaled, ready to let out another defiant howl. All that escaped was a pained yelp as a surge of electricity coursed through him. Griffin stepped up from behind him, cattle prod in hand.

"Learn your place boy"

Velma and Scooby ran out to him. Velma hoisted Shaggy up out of the mud. Scooby stood baring his teeth and growling at Griffin. Behind them the armor stood up and made a move toward them. Griffin held up his hand and it stopped.

"I'll see you in the ring boy" It growled before heading back up to the castle.

"You two as well" Griffin said to Velma and Scooby. "Learn you places."

Shaggy stood up straight once they had walked away. Velma turned to him. "What was that?"

"I have no idea" Shaggy squeaked.

Jekyll walked up to them, a look of shocked admiration on his face. "That was a privilege to watch, thank you."

Adam came up and clapped a hand on Shaggy's shoulder. "Come on boy, I'm buying you a drink."


	19. Griffin's Concerns

**Part 18: Griffin's Concerns**

Dracula reclined in his throne, one leg up on the armrest. One of his brides, Aleera, was draped across his lap. He stared at Griffin with his cold, unfeeling, unmoving eyes.

"You are saying that you wish me to terminate this… Sha-gee. Even after all of your success?"

"Not terminate, just sedate, until we have the key and the chest. Then you may have him open it, and then terminate him."

"You are concerned" Dracula stood, leaving Aleera to slink off to one of the cushioned areas of Dracula's private chamber. "Concerned that he is too willful. As am I. No matter how weak he seems, it is the Wolf instinct to fight for the weak. That is why we must keep him awake, why we must break his spirits, then his body."

"As you wish my lord" Griffin bowed. "Before I leave, you may wish to know that Knudsen and Ravencroft were successful in their mission. The tracking spell placed on the key fragment should lead them to wherever Van Ghoul and his followers have determined the next resting place is."

"Excellent" Dracula crooned. "Inform me when we have acquired the all of the pieces."

"Yes my lord."


	20. Kate's Visions

**Part 19: Kate's Visions**

Kate tossed in her bed. Her dreams were getting worse. She was used to nightmares of course, she had had them most of her life. She had certainly had the dreams about Seamus and Fiona before, ever since Simon had died. They had subsided briefly after Norville was born, but had come back with a vengeance this past March.

"Come find me" Kate heard in the familiar Irish accent. She was dreaming about Seamus again. "Come to the castle, my time is short, the O'Flannery legacy must be passed on."

Something was wrong. The voice sounded older than usual, frailer. Kate stood in the courtyard of the castle, only instead of seeing things as Fiona she was herself. An old man sat across from her. He was on a stone bench, leaning on a long spear for support. His hair and beard were completely white and looked as though they had not been groomed in ages. The tattered remains of a set of blue robes hung on his wiry frame. It was Seamus, though Kate was not sure how she knew exactly.

"What happened to you?"

"Time happened Daughter of the House of O'Flannery. You and your children are our last hope, come and claim your birthright.

"I don't need to hear this!" Kate said turning away angrily.

The dream shifted suddenly, and Kate was a sixteen year old girl, sitting on the doorstep of her house in Oakhaven. He father and mother were standing in front of her, pleading with her. They had already grounded her the day before for her haircut, her clothes, whatever they needed to, whatever made them remember that the perfect son was gone. They would probably ground her for _hogging _Simon's necklace soon.

"Kate please, it's for the best" Her father said.

"It's for the best to send me away?"

"It's a boarding school" Her mother said. "It's very prestigious."

"Just admit it, with Norville gone you don't want me around!" Kate stood up and stormed off.

She walked farther than she had meant to, but her parents never ran after her. One way of being rid of her was as good as another. Once she finally stopped, she found herself in the town cemetery. Across the street she could see Beth Grayson and Jack McKnight embracing in front of the diner. They were going to get married for sure. Beth the Wiccan and WASP-y Jack McKnight, they would be able to because their parents cared more about their children's happiness than their family names.

Kate turned away and opened the door to the family crypt. She descended the stairs, stopping at the most recent casket; _Norville Simon O'Flannery_. She pressed her fingers against the newly carved grave marker.

"I miss you Norville." She sobbed. Tears began streaming down her cheeks. "I miss you."

_Free us_, she heard something hiss. Kate turned sharply, trying to find the source of the noise. _Free us_. Kate clutched at Norville's necklace. She began to step carefully out of the crypt. _Free us! _She ran.

The dream shifted again, this time to years later. She was out of boarding school and two years into university. That was when she had gotten the call about her parents, both dead of sickness and old age. She had half a mind not to go to the funeral, she hadn't spoken to them in years, but the estate had to be taken care of, and some of those things were Norville's.

When she arrived she had been dealt the second blow of the week. Beth Grayson, or Beth McKnight, as she had become had been killed in a car crash, leaving behind Jack and their newborn daughter Sally. That, she decided, was where the money would go when she got it. She would give some to Jack, and maybe some to Norville's medical school. She would keep a little for herself, just enough to get away for a while, maybe go see if she could track down any family in Ireland.

"You were so close Katherine" Seamus croaked. "You almost made it to the castle."

She was in a pub in Kilkenny now. She had tracked down a few O'Flannery boys and would go visit them tomorrow. They had said they had a castle to show her, something she could hardly believe and was not sure she actually wanted to see.

"No, I'm not saying I do more than you, I'm just saying I'm better at it" She heard a man laugh from across the bar. He had a thick southern drawl.

"The hell you are" A second man with a New York accent said merrily. "I'm the better detective and certainly the better fighter."

Kate could not help but chuckle with them. They really seemed to be enjoying themselves.

"Whatever hotshot. I'll see you back at the inn."

Kate finally looked back as the southern man walked out. He was broad and muscular, with short reddish brown hair. The other man was tall and lithe with dark brown hair and a five o'clock shadow.

The New Yorker walked up to the bar and ordered another drink. He sat down at the bar next to Kate.

"It's nice to see another American." She smiled at him.

"It is." He smiled back and held out his hand. "Name's Sam Rogers."

"Kate, Kate O'Flannery."

"Nice to meet you."

Kate finally woke up from her dream. It was still dark out, but Kate had a feeling she would not be getting back to sleep anytime soon. She checked on Maggie, who was still asleep, although tossing and turning like she was having dreams just as strange.

Ever since the attack she had been staying in George and Josephine's house. It was something of a maze, but she was getting used to it. She found her way to the kitchen where an armed squad of _knights_ was standing guard. One of them she recognized, Michael Warner from the Darrow Library. He stood with his arms crossed by the door, beaked hook shadowing his eyes.

"Warner" She called.

He looked up. "Ma'am."

"Don't ma'am me." She snapped. "We're the same age."

"Term of respect ma'am. Your kind are held in high esteem by the brotherhood."

"Right" Kate rolled her eyes. "I wanna talk to Van Ghoul. I have something to ask him about."

To her surprise Warner nodded and led her outside and into an unmarked black car. She slid into the passenger seat beside him. As they drove through town she could see a heavier presence of robed men and women. In addition the local police seemed to be coordinating with them for the time being.

"So, it was you that saved Velma and me at the hospital?"

"Well technically you saved me at the end. Meant to thank you for that."

"You're welcome. So did your wife know about… this?" She gestured to the robe.

"She does now" Warner sighed.

"Was she upset?"

"Why do you think I'm pulling a nightshift here?"

"Do you think she'll be okay with it later?"

"Probably. We've been through this before, when she found out about my ranger days in the army." Warner caught Kate's look. "I had a life before this" He laughed. "We all did, even Sam."

"Do you know where Sam is now?"

"He's coordinating our boys and girls with the Coolsville PD and the other Barbera County police forces. This is pretty big operation, biggest local revelation since the Martian Incursion of 1896."

"Right, so suddenly aliens are real too?"

"Nothing sudden about it. We've been dealing with aliens for decades. The Annunaki gave us some real trouble with that Nibiru thing in two thousand three. "

"And how do you keep it all secret? How are you going to keep secret after this?" She waved her hands around to indicate the town.

Warner sighed. "Secrecy is second to safety. We'll go public if we have to. But we'll try to get the county to cooperate. Something this big, we usually have to get total cooperation, and we usually do. An event like this changes people, makes them see just how big the world is."

"What about smaller events?"

Warner looked uncomfortable. "Anything that just applies to a few people, or maybe a small town, we have the witches modify memories. They can't actually erase anything and wouldn't anyway, but they can modify the details of memories, like that Oakhaven op Sam worked twenty years back." Kate shot him a look and Warner's eyes went wide. "Damn."

"Beth McKnight?" Kate guessed

"Up and coming witch, she died taking out a second rate conjurer who used the spirit of a dead ancestor to give himself powers. Sam took a long sabbatical after that one and…"

"I don't want to know." Kate cut him off, holding her hand up.

Warner took a turn down 3rd Street and began making his way into Old Coolsville. As the area became less well kept the number of knights travelling to and from the house increased. Two guards opened the gates and he drove up the main path to the front. He stopped for Kate to get out.

"I have to get back to my post. Mister Van Ghoul will be waiting in the sitting room." Kate turned to leave. "Hey Kate. It's not easy for guys like me and Sam, guys with families, and it tears us up inside to keep things from you, but what makes it easier is the fact that we get to go home at the end of the day and see what we're fighting for, and for a few hours or a few days we get to have a break from the absolute madness that our lives become the moment we take our oaths."

With that Warner drove off and Kate entered the house. She found Van Ghoul in the sitting room. He was resting, legs crossed, in an armchair by the fire, sipping tea. Kate took a seat across from him.

"Welcome child" He greeted. "Would you like some tea?"

"No thank you."

"Very well, what did you wish to speak with me about?"

Kate breathed in deeply. "I've had dreams since I was girl, about a castle, and a couple named Seamus and Fiona. They've had a resurgence recently except now Seamus is older, and he's telling me directly that he wants me to come and see him."

"Your son's friends tell me that he had been having similar dreams. They found the castle, apparently your family hall in Kilkenny. I will have Jonathan and Rachael help you look into it."


	21. Allied Invasion

**Part 20: Allied Invasion**

Fred woke up in his seat in the plane. Daphne cuddled up next to him, still asleep. During the night, someone had put a blanket on them, good thing too, because at the moment, the plane was freezing. Fred stood up and stretched, walking up and down the cabin for a minute. He retrieved his knife, lighter, and mints from the table, having removed them during the night when they started poking him.

With nothing else to do, he walked up to the cockpit and peered inside, intending to see what Fletcher and Rachael were up to. He pushed back to curtain and his eyes went wide.

"You're not Rachael." Fred flicked open his knife.

"No" The man turned to him. "Not lately."

"Van Ghoul right?" Fred said as he took the copilot's seat and flicked the knife closed.

"Indeed."

Fred drummed his fingers against the control panel. "So what's your story, Fletcher said he was pulled off the streets, Rachael was a third generation knight, Warner was pulled out of special forces, what about you, how do you get to be leader of this freaksho… organization?"

Van Ghoul veered the plane a bit. Outside a lush countryside surrounded by mountains rolled by, only visible in the night by the lights of small towns and farmhouses.

"You could say that I am a legacy as well."

"You're a witch, like Fletcher and like Madelyn, you guys live longer than normal?"

"I was born in 1895. Fletcher and our other witches, the Merlyn brothers, are no older than they appear, but they will appear as they are now for at least another fifty years. Your friends Madelyn and Sally will most likely outlive all of you. It's one of the reasons why we seek out witches to recruit, because we know what it feels like and we want them to know they are not alone."

"Well I sure as hell hope that someone is going to tell Madelyn soon, because the girl has a right to know." Fred leaned back in his chair and began absently flipping his knife open and closed. "Where are we going anyway?"

"Germany, specifically the Bavarian Alps. There is a castle there, a former Nazi stronghold and laboratory. Griffin and other members of the Cult of Dracula performed experiments there primarily during the Second World War."

"Right" Fred rolled his eyes. "Because Dracula wasn't evil enough already, he had to be allied with the Nazis."

Van Ghoul touched the plane down miraculously. Despite it neither being a VTOL craft or, indeed, a jet, they managed to land perfectly in the center of a large courtyard. Fred and Daphne gathered their belongings, Daphne making sure to include her Kukri this time, and Fred reluctantly strapping the revolver to his hip. They exited the craft with Van Ghoul, still clad in his dark suit, although the cloak had been ditched in favor of a dark black overcoat.

They walked into what remained of the castle, the main structure seemingly having been blown up at some point in the past. Fred guessed that WWII had not been particularly kind to the place. Ivy had blanketed the walls and the sound of scurrying rats could be heard around every corner.

"The fortress was used by Dracula's people throughout both World Wars. During World War One they were unaligned, attacking both sides indiscriminately. Come World War Two, Griffin acted as a liaison between Dracula's Cult and the Nazi aligned Thule Society, effectively bolstering their numbers for the next century and forming the basis for the Hand of Draco, the cult's public face in this century."

"So if the Nazis had Dracula on their side, how did we win?"

"Well, first off, the allies had help as well, you didn't think I just sat around and drank tea for the entirety of the war did you?" Van Ghoul smirked. "Also, the Nazis did not have Dracula on their side so much as he had the Nazis on his, he offered little aid, using them as he saw fit. Most Dracula loyalists in the Nazi ranks were just that, loyal to Dracula above all else."

They continued into the castle. Van Ghoul lit his hand as Fletcher had done and illuminated their way. As they travelled the halls, Fred got a sense of what Van Ghoul had meant. Plenty of banners hung on the walls, but they were all dragon banners, the same symbol that the Hand of Draco agents had carved at Cape Casem. The people that had been here knew where their loyalties lied.

Up a broken flight of stairs (which Van Ghoul helpfully reformed) they came to a blown out laboratory. Skeletons in SS uniforms littered the floor. Daphne stepped over one, making her way to a set of animal cages against the far wall. She ran her fingers across the bars, muttering curses under her breath.

In the middle of the room, Fred lifted up an old projector and fiddled with the switches. To his surprise, it activated. The lights flickered for a moment and the film began to roll. An image of a sharp featured man with a blond bowl cut was projected against the wall. He wore a tan SS uniform and small glasses over deep grey eyes.

"Hallo" The man in the film began. "Ich bin Doktor Phineas Phibes."

"Hold on a moment" Van Ghoul said. He waved his hands at the projector and a blue mist enveloped it.

"I am the head of the SS Draco Division" Phibes continued, now in English. "Report on Project Talos and Project Beowolf. The Kriegstaffelbots perform to specifications. I believe that they will be ready to replace human soldiers by the winter. As for Project Beowulf, as you know, we are already in phase two. Phase one being the total extermination of all werewolves. The dragon itself is uncooperative without coercion, but its fire is a greater weapon than we have ever seen. I do, however, believe that if we could find the dragon used in Phase one back during the Great War, we would have an easier time of it. As for the key, it has been analyzed by the most cutting edge of technology. I unfortunately believe there to be no way of activating its power without werewolf assistance…"

_Flick, flick, flick_. The film ran out, tapping against the projector as it continued to spin. Fred looked on slack jawed. Behind him, Daphne picked up a file labeled, _Project Beowulf, Phase One_, dated toward the middle of WWI.

"The search for a cooperative dragon has finally born fruit. The offensive begins and soon all werewolves will be eliminated." Daphne translated. "Incident report, Phase One successful baring minor SD incursion… SD?"

"League Sin Demon" Van Ghoul answered without looking towards them. "Our former name."

"Three agents" Daphne continued. "Made their way into the facility. Two deceased, one MIA."

"You can stop now" Van Ghoul said, voice quivering slightly.

"Yes, I imagine you'd like that _Vincent_." An Italian accented voice said from the stairwell.

They all turned to see a woman, tall and beautiful, with luscious black hair and blood red lips. Her skin was white as alabaster and she was covered only in a loose black gown. She smiled at them, showing off sharp fangs.

"Verona" Van Ghoul hissed. "What are you doing here?"

"Same as you, seeking the key."

"Who are you?" Daphne asked as she slipped her hand into her pocket and closed her fingers around the Bali Song.

"Verona Dracula, eldest and most trusted of his brides."

"Van Helsing killed your sister alone" Van Ghoul said. "You think you stand a chance alone against the three of us?"

"Probably" She smirked. "But I leave nothing to chance. Intruder Alert. Kriegstaffelbots activate.

"Ja Kommandant" A mechanical voice rang out from the far wall, sounding a bit like the man in the film.

The group stepped back as the wall slid open to reveal a horde of what they assumed must be the Kriegstaffelbots. They were about eight feet tall and completely armor plated. German helmets and round goggle eyes gave them some semblance of faces. Each had a full right arm and a left arm that consisted of a Gatling gun. The eyes lit up red as they stepped out of their holding pen.

"Fredrick, Daphne" Van Ghoul called out as the guns began to whir. "Run!"

He cast his hand at Verona, knocking her against the wall long enough for Fred and Daphne to push past her down the stairs. Gunfire echoed behind them but they dared not look back. At the base of the stairs they collided head on with a body, cold as ice.

"Hello" Verona smiled down at them. "Naughty children." She grabbed Fred by the chin and pulled him up against her. Her eyes bore into him as she spoke in a soft, soothing voice. "You will help me yes? You're a big strong man, you want to help me right?"

Fred's eyes glazed over. He nodded and she released him. Daphne looked on shocked and hurt as Fred kneeled before the vampire.

"What would you have me do beloved?"

"Kill the redhead." Verona laughed mirthlessly.

"As you command."

Fred drew the revolver and leveled it off at Daphne. His face was blank but behind him Verona was smiling. Daphne grit her teeth and swung her hand at Fred's arm, pushing the gun away before nailing him with the other hand. In the ensuing confusion Daphne backed up against the window behind her and jumped.


	22. Passing the Torch

**Part 21: Passing the Torch**

Kate doubled over as she stepped out of Fletcher's portal. Whatever food she had taken in that afternoon was quickly expelled in a fit of retching that echoed through the cool Kilkenny night. Rachael and Sam stepped out next, stumbling slightly, and Fletcher behind them, smiling a broadly as ever.

"Kate" Sam said worriedly stepping forward. She waved him away.

Rachael punched Fletcher on the arm. "Sorry, my husband's a bloody show off." Rachael handed her a handkerchief and she wiped her mouth. "It'll wear off in a minute."

Kate stood up, set her jaw, and nodded at them. The group moved forward, out of the forest they had appeared in and toward the towering remains of O'Flannery Hall.

It had held up remarkably well, but was still off limits to tourists. Kate had remembered hearing about it from the cousins when she visited, but they had always maintained that it was a bad place to go. They would say that they heard voices in the halls, that it was haunted. Kate did not want to admit it, but ever since they had arrived she had heard a faint whispering in her ears.

At the main gate they stopped. Sam and Rachael took positions on either side of the padlocked door. Rachael had a long curved knife out and Sam clutched a pistol. Back in the monastery Kate had seen him load the clip with silver bullets.

Fletcher melted the lock and they went in first, Kate always remaining between Fletcher and the two fighters. Sam and Rachael led them through the ruins with a practiced efficiency, checking and double checking every door before entering.

"Records are vague" Fletcher explained. "But we think that your family actually had a long history with our order. Kilkenny is one of the birthplaces of the Faoladh, you may have been a founding family."

"So why not anymore. The O'Flanneries came to America just before the Civil War, why would they have abandoned the order. Why wouldn't the Faoladh gene have been passed on like you said it was meant to?"

Fletcher breathed in, about to speak. "I don't know" He admitted, wincing as though ignorance actually hurt him.

As they passed up a flight of stairs, the whispering in Kate's head grew stronger. She clutched at her temples and kneeled down on the dirt strewn floor. Sam moved forward but Rachael waved him off and sat beside her instead.

"What's wrong dear?"

"He's calling me" She squeaked. "Seamus is calling me."

"Maybe residual spirit energy" Fletcher offered. "Seamus may have stayed on as a ghost due to unfinished business, passing on the mantle of Faoladh perhaps."

Sam's eyes went wide. "I don't think so Fletch" He said hoarsely.

They all looked up as a section of the wall slid open. A man, at least most likely a man, shuffled out into the hall with them. A stark white beard went all the way to the floor and trailed behind the emaciated frame. A distinct glow emanated from his eyes and a set of sharp canines were the only strong looking bit of his otherwise weak face.

He hobbled forward, leaning on a large golden staff, before half crouching, half falling in front of Kate. Sam hovered his hand around the trigger of his pistol.

"For over a century I have waited" The man croaked with a distinct Irish accent. "I have waited for one of you to follow your instincts, to come here and fulfill your purpose. So long as I am the last I cannot die Katherine O'Flannery." He laid a hand on her shoulder. "The power has ravaged my body, but I have weathered it, weathered the purge and the wars and everything thrown at me on faith that one day you would come to reclaim your birthright and to use it to bring our kind back from extinction. I am sorry for you're the loss of your brother, sorry that you will have to pass it down to your children so soon to spare yourself the strain that has ravaged me, but that is the price of my faith…." The old man brushed his hand across Kate's cheek. She took his frail arm into her fingers. "And now my faith is rewarded. I, Seamus O'Flannery, do solemnly pass down the mantle of Faoladh to my descendant in good faith that she will pass it down to her own children."

In the fastest move the man had made thus far he lunged forward, shifting as he moved into a scarred and shaggy haired wolf before sinking his teeth into Kate's shoulder. Kate screamed and fell back and the old man shifted back into human form and tumbled to the ground. He put his hand out toward Kate and grasped her fingers.

"Serve with honor child. And protect the key that I entrusted to your ancestor so many decades ago." As the last word escaped his lips he crumbled away, first to a skeleton and then to dust.


	23. Nature

**Part 22: Nature**

Jekyll and Adam led Shaggy, Scooby, and Velma to the center of town where there stood a small tavern that, unlike the rest of the village, was well lit and emanated warmth. A sign over the door showed a leathery black wing and underneath that in black letters said _The Bat's Wing_.

"It used to be called _The Crippled Bat_" Jekyll explained. "Obviously Dracula made us change it so now it's _The Bat's Wing_, with the implication that the crippled, one winged bat, is still out there somewhere."

They were moved inside to face the strangest assortment of beings they had ever laid eyes on. Obviously there were humans, the same villagers that they had seen on the way up, but behind the bar stood what appeared to be a fully reanimated skeleton, laughing with the patrons as he served them their drinks. Several seemingly human creatures sat off in the corner laughing. One might have taken them for human townsfolk except for pointed ears and grey skin. Metal collars where affixed around the necks of each one and they constantly fidgeted with them, smoke coming from their fingers whenever they touched.

Adam left their group to greet a slim, pale, woman with stitching down the sides of her head and frizzy hair streaked with white. He kissed her and they sat down at the bar together.

At the far wall, a band composed of humans and the pointy eared creatures played lively music that reminded Velma of some odd cross between Klezmer and Irish folk music.

Jekyll walked them down to the bar and sat next to another woman with straight black hair and the unsettling white skin that the gang had come to associate with Vampires. Their suspicions were proven right when she smiled at Jekyll and showed off her fangs. Shaggy and Scooby winced and Velma clutched at the countertop, not exactly sure what she was trying to do, but perhaps thinking that she could rip a wooden stake from the counter itself.

"Relax" Jekyll waved his hand at them as the woman turned to face them.

They could now see that she had not been alone, a baby with the same white skin and smaller, more transparent fangs was resting in her arms. Velma had a split second flashback to reading the novel _Dracula _when she was ten and being horrified when the brides had eaten a kidnapped human baby. But this baby was clearly a vampire, born that way? Velma wondered.

"Like hi" Shaggy stuttered.

"Hello" She said in an English accent that caught Shaggy off guard. He had been expecting _Vampire Vords _not a proper English lady.

"Children" Jekyll put a hand on the woman's shoulder. "This is… well Dracula calls her Vana, which was the name of the bride Van Helsing killed and she replaced, her real name is Lucille Westenra."

Velma choked on the water the skeletal bartender had given her.

"Oh, so you've read the book" Lucille smiled.

"You died!"

"Well, in a sense. Dracula turned me with the intention that I would kill my old friends, brave Jonathan and my darling Mina in some cruel irony. Unfortunately for him I was able to resist the curse in a way the other brides could not. I maintained a small part of my humanity, which Dracula took advantage of when it allowed him to produce an heiress, something the other brides, likewise, could not do." She held the baby closer to her chest, and the child smiled up at her mother and laughed. "I shudder to think what she could turn out like once _he _begins grooming her for the throne."

"Lucy" Jekyll brushed the hair out of her eyes. "With whatever power I have he will never lay a hand on your darling Sibella."

"When did you get so brave?" She laughed.

Jekyll stood up and clapped Shaggy on the shoulder. "Why it's all because of this young man here." He took a drink from the bartender and gulped it down. "This young man stood up to the Black Knight himself and won. We get so few things to celebrate living under the old bat's regime. So let's celebrate this! Bartender! Two _Witches Brews_ for the young warrior and his friend and a plate of your finest meats for the loyal hound!"

Scooby shot Jekyll a dirty look. "Round?"

"Like, we're not old enough to drink."

"One" Jekyll said as the bartender passed them two foaming tankards. "We're in Transylvania, the same laws don't apply and two, this isn't alcohol it's alchemy."

Shaggy and Velma looked at their drinks hesitantly.

"Please" Lucille said. "For Henry, let him celebrate your victory, celebrate with him, you deserve it."

Shaggy and Velma nodded their agreement, much to Scooby's surprise. They downed their drinks and immediately broad grins broke onto their faces. The band started up a lively tune which the entire tavern began to sing along to.

_What goes bump in the night?_

_We go bump in the night._

_We come out for a bite_

_We creatures of terror and FRIGHT!_

Scooby watched as Shaggy and Velma stood up and began dancing together. Ordinarily he would have been happy to see that, having waited so long for them to get together and then having seen Velma scared away. But there was something unnatural about this, about the way the vampire woman had spoken to them.

"Eat up brave hound" She said to Scooby as a plate of meats was put in front of him.

"Ro thanks" He barked suspiciously. "Rot hungry."

Scooby slinked away from the bar and out the door of the tavern. He needed some air. The tavern sat with its back to the forest. Scooby guessed, based on what Jekyll had said, that if he tried to go through he would stopped or killed. He probably should have been scared, or, at least, more scared, but he had reached his limit a while ago.

His ears perked up and rotated towards the tree line. He turned, making contact with several sets of yellow eyes, all slightly above his own eye level.

"Alright" He called. "Come on out. I'm done dealing with shadows."

Several hulking grey wolves strode out into the open. The one in the lead glared down at Scooby. A long red gash ran down over a white, blinded eye. Scooby barely recognized the face, but he recognized the scent.

"Romulus" Scooby sneered. He remembered tricking the brutish alpha into a pit trap the previous summer. The scar was new though.

"Not exactly puppy." The big wolf said. "In addition to being the master of bats and rats I am the master of wolves. You are speaking directly to Count Dracula through the body of your old playmate."

"Well in that case, you can go…"

"Oh no puppy, you should practice being more polite to your new master."

"Confident aren't we. You think I'm just gonna bend over for you like the jerk pack here?"

"You are an animal, it's in your nature."

Scooby smirked. "You wanna know about nature bat boy, I beat their alpha, as far as they're concerned I'm probably their leader."

"You want to put that to the test?"

"What's the plan here Drac, why take Shaggy, why take me and Velma with him?"

"What makes you think I'll tell you?"

"Because people like you like to rant. _It's nature_."

"Very good puppy" Romulus' body barked in a pitiful attempt at emulating a human laugh. "_Nature_, you know, your girlfriend in the pack and her brother put up a wonderful fight defending nature when we reclaimed Romulus and his allies. They said you were their rightful alpha as well. Can you guess where that got them?"

Scooby growled and bared his teeth. "You son of a…"

Scooby was blindsided by a pouncing wolf. The brute pinned him to the ground. As he struggled to free himself, the Romulus puppet walked up to him and put its snout right in his face.

"Nature, puppy, is the strong dominating the weak. Reflect on that."

The wolf let him go and the pack disappeared into the trees once more. Scooby stood up and walked back to the tavern, shaking with all the fear he had bottled up trying to appear confident back there.


	24. Hassle in the Castle

**"Transylvanian Horses" from _Van Helsing_.**

**Part 23: Hassle in the Castle**

Daphne tried to slow her breathing as she ducked into one of the castle's side chambers. She could hear the Kriegstaffelbots metallic feet marching around and above her. She also had no doubt that the hypnotized Freddy was still stalking the halls with his gun, something she would have to thank Shaggy's father for later.

As quietly as possible Daphne unsheathed the kukri from the scabbard strapped to her back. She positioned herself by the door just as one of the robots walked by, its red eyes shining like searchlights in the dark. Daphne whirled out the doorway and stuck the knife into the circuitry that connected its head to the rest of its body. The bot sparked and died, clattering to the ground just as another one rounded the corner. Daphne crouched behind the wreckage of the first one as the gunfire commenced.

Desperately she grabbed hold of the Gatling gun on the one she had destroyed, pointed it at her new foe, and slammed on the barrel, hoping that would activate it. To her surprise and delight it did, blasting its comrade to scrap. The gun, however, did not seem inclined to stop firing. Daphne ran as the arm began moving wildly, spraying bullets in all directions.

Daphne ran around the next corner and into the nearest room, slamming the door behind her. She breathed deeply as she turned away from the hall, trying again to calm herself. She had almost succeeded when her eyes adjusted and she saw the skeleton seated rigidly at a desk in the middle of the room.

It wore the same tan SS uniform as the man in the film and she could see a set of glasses resting on the desk. She approached the corpse, taking notice of the missing hand and the metal hook resting on the floor below the bony stump.

Daphne picked up a file resting on the desk. She flipped it open, and was greeted by a file photo of a young man, early twenties, she guessed, with slick black hair. A caption below the picture read _Quincy Abraham Arthur Jonathan Wilhelm Harker, British Army, League Sin Demon_.

_Subject was captured during an attempt to stop Operation Beowulf. His two companions, Peter Van Ghoul and Christopher Vincent were killed during the initial attack. Subject has been subject to interrogation but refuses to reveal the location of the League Sin Demon base. His father, league head Jonathan Harker, may agree to pay ransom. This should be looked into._

Daphne remembered Quincy Harker from when she read _Dracula_; John and Mina's son, born on the anniversary of Dracula's defeat. The other names had given Daphne an idea, but it was best saved for discussion in the unlikely event of a later.

Putting down the file, Daphne began rummaging through the desk drawers. There were several more sets of papers, a few books, a small tool kit, and a luger pistol. Daphne checked the gun but, finding it empty dropped it back into the drawer where it landed with a hollow thud.

Daphne peered closer at the drawer bottom and tapped it again, definitely hollow. Once again wielding the kukri, Daphne lifted the false bottom and gazed in awe at the small golden rod underneath. It had to be the last piece of the key, she was sure of that.

"Hand it over Daph"

"Putain fils de pute" Daphne mumbled as she turned around to face Fred.

He was bleeding from the shoulder, she guessed one of the Kriegstaffelbots had grazed him. His face and clothes were dirty but he kept the same blank look in his eyes as he pointed the gun at Daphne's head.

"The key. Now."

"Freddy" She smiled. "I just want you to know I understand that you're not in control of your actions right now and that I don't blame you. I just hope that you understand that I can't surrender to you."

"And how do you plan on getting out?"

"Well" Daphne rested her hands on the desk. "Mister Van Ghoul could always help me, right sir?" She waved at the doorway.

Fred turned for a second and Daphne jumped for the gun. She wrapped her fingers around his outstretched arm and hit it as hard as she could. His fingers unclasped and the revolver fell to the floor. Never breaking stride, Daphne vaulted over the desk, kneeing Fred in the stomach on the way over and running from the room.

Fred was faster than she remembered though, perhaps a result of the single minded determination this trance provided. He turned around and grabbed Daphne by the ankle, tripping her to the floor. Daphne groped around for something to hold on to as Fred dragged her back toward the desk. Her hand latched on to a wooden chair and she tossed it back, nailing Fred in the stomach. He dropped to the floor again, the termite eaten chair shattering beside him.

"Does it hurt dear" She heard Verona croon.

Daphne stood up as the devil woman glided into the room. She unsheathed her knife again.

"Let him go."

"What makes you think he's doing anything not of his own will? What makes you think he is not just doing this out of devotion to me?"

"Nice try lady." Daphne grimaced. "I'm sure back in the day you were used to fighting insecure little girls who didn't know if their husbands really loved them or not, but that's not me."

Verona glared at Daphne in annoyance, something she felt very proud of. Then she pulled a large rapier off the wall and pointed it at Daphne's heart.

"Very well then."

Daphne didn't wait for Verona to strike first. She lunged at the creature, slashing her kukri right where the chest would have been. Verona dissolved in a cloud of black smoke and whipped around, appearing behind Daphne and swiping with the rapier. Daphne barely moved out of the way, taking a small cut to the stomach. She tried slashing again but Verona repeated her trick. Each time Daphne made a move the vampire woman dissolved and reappeared somewhere else, ready to strike.

"Do you yield?" Verona asked as she brought her blade down towards Daphne's head.

Daphne rolled out of the way, coming to a crouch by the splintered remains of the chair. "Go to hell."

Daphne scooped a splintered stake of wood into her free hand and stood up. Verona smiled at her, clearly confident in her impending victory. She swiped the kukri at the vampire, but not with nearly as much power as before. As expected Verona disappeared into a cloud of smoke. Daphne twirled in the opposite direction, catching the creature just as she was reforming and driving the stake easily through the partially formed chest. With the thought of the creature's attack on Fred and the memory of the climax of the novel _Dracula _running through her mind, Daphne swiped the kukri through the creature's neck, separating the head from the body.

The moment the blade passed through it the body turned to dust. Daphne had a brief vision of a spirit rising from the dust. A smiling young woman with curly black hair and lively eyes looked at her.

"Grazie"

The spirit dissolved and Daphne collapsed to floor, kicking herself as far away from the dust pile as possible. Fred, his eyes cleared now, stood up, rubbing his head. He looked over at Daphne quietly sobbing on the floor. He walked slowly over to her, aware that he had probably just been attacking her, and not sure if she wanted to be near him at the moment.

"Daph" He kneeled beside her. "You alright?"

Daphne looked up at him with red eyes. "I killed her."

Fred looked over at the pile of dust, vaguely remembering that it was once one of Dracula's brides.

"Okay" He put his arms around her. "Hey, it's okay. She was undead anyway, you remember _Dracula_, how Van Helsing said that killing them was allowing them to move on, that's all you did, you helped her move on."

Van Ghoul walked in a moment later, his suit shredded and riddled with bullet holes.

"Damned robots, I'm not as young as I used to be. Oh splendid, you've killed her." He looked down at Daphne and noticed her distress. "Not so splendid? If it's any consolation, she probably thanked you in her last moments."

Daphne nodded.

"She's at peace now" Van Ghoul assured her. "She spent centuries under the heel of the bit of Dracula that she had been infected with. Now her soul can rest." He picked up the kukri from the dust pile. "Don't leave this. It's a good weapon, my father used one."

"Your father Jonathan Harker?" Daphne stuttered. "I found the files on the team who tried to stop the werewolf purge. Quincy Harker, Peter Van Ghoul and Christopher Vincent. You escaped, they thought you were dead so you took your friends' names when you returned."

"Yes" Van Ghoul nodded. "Though it's not as much of a secret as it once was. I suppose I could go back, but I've been Vincent Van Ghoul for so long, I rather think that's who I am. Quincy Harker, the young soldier who picked a fight he knew he should not is dead, and I live, older and wiser."

Fred and Daphne both nodded at him. With a heavy sigh, Daphne took back the kukri and sheathed it. She dropped the key fragment into Van Ghoul's hand and helped Fred limp back to the plane. After all, they still had friends to save.


	25. A Living Battery

**Part 24: A Living Battery**

Scooby watched closely as Adam and Jekyll carried the sleeping forms of Shaggy and Velma back to their room in the castle. All in all he still did not trust any of them. They all smelled like death.

Shaggy was laid on the bed and Velma on a cot that had been brought in sometime during the day. Had Shaggy been awake he would have insisted on taking the cot, but Jekyll and Adam seemed to consider Shaggy the more important asset.

Once they had left Scooby began sniffing around the room. He had felt a slight draft when he first entered the room, but helping Velma nurse Shaggy back to health had prevented him from investigating.

Tonight he was able to track it to the east side of the room, opposite the window. He pawed at the decaying wallpaper, putting his claws through it and tearing. So old, was the paper, that when it tore it did not even sound like paper and it almost turned to dust at the mere touch of Scooby's paws.

Finally getting it out of the way Scooby stared at the loosely bolted grate that had been behind it. He bit down on it and yanked it free, creating a loud metallic ringing that he was sure would wake up Shaggy and Velma. Yet, looking back, he saw them as sound asleep as ever.

Apprehensively, Scooby climbed into the new opening. It was a tunnel barely big enough for him, probably an old air vent that Dracula had deemed unnecessary. Cobwebs brushed against his fur and made him shiver, which in turn made him scrape his body against the walls.

Through the cracks in the stone, Scooby could hear indistinct chatter, and he had a vague suspicion that he was getting echoes from across the castle. He pushed through, some of the chatter growing louder. At one point he thought he heard the Black Knight from earlier laughing, and he realized that whatever this little expedition brought, it would have to be over by morning. Something would happen then, and he had suspicions that it had something to do with Shaggy and Velma's assisted partying earlier.

Finally, Scooby came to another grate, this one free of paper. He pushed against it and broke out into a large chamber. The walls were all covered with glass panels that reflected the room three hundred and sixty degrees and come to a dome at the top. Wires ran from the center of the dome down the walls and into the center of the room where they connected to a wooden and metal chair.

On any normal day, seeing the chair, and the young woman strapped to it would have made Scooby run for the hills, instead, he just had to suppress his own gag reflex. It was plain, even to him that the girl was hooked up to some kind of machine, glowing auras of energy sped from her body along the wires. But it was not merely the presence of the girl that turned his stomach, though that was enough. It was her identity.

Though the black hair was disheveled and frizzed as though she had been electrocuted and the red highlights all but faded away, Scooby still recognized the scent. It was Thorn, or Sally, as her father had called her. He admitted that he was out of his depth, and unsure exactly what they needed her for, but at this point he was not surprised.

Quickly he ran to the center of the room, intent on freeing her. His plans were put on hold by the creaking of the door at the far end of the room. Scooby ducked behind the chair, close enough to hear Thorn's shallow breathing.

Two men walked in, one was short and fat, with greasy black hair and a scruffy beard. The other was taller, more lithe, and walked in a way that Scooby had come to associate mostly with human females.

The fat one checked one of the cables, waving his hand over it and extracting some of the glowing energy. "The power this little girl is generating is amazing. Are you sure you have to kill her when we're done?"

A white shadow passed across the other man's face, and for a moment, Scooby saw the specter of a woman, with sharp features, a pointed nose, and long flowing hair. "I must have vengeance for what this little one's family did to me. Only then will I be able to restore my own body, and leave this substandard dwelling." The man with the ghost inside him looked disdainfully at himself in the mirror. "It is my reward for serving the master faithfully."

"Once she has given enough power to reassemble the key?"

"Yes, of course."

The possessed man walked up to Thorn and grabbed at her chin, staring her straight in the eye. Thorn looked up groggily, but when their eyes locked her face hardened.

"Go to hell" She half sobbed.

"Never again," the ghost woman said severely.

The two men adjusted the equipment and drew a bit more energy from the wires before leaving, clicking a lock on the door behind them. Scooby slinked out from his hiding spot and passed in front of the human girl he had met so long ago.

"Rorn?"

Thorn looked down. A small smile broke onto her smudged face. "Hey, you're the dog from the Florida show, nice doggy."

"Rime ronna ret roo outa rere."

"Turns out I'm a witch, how about that?" Scooby was getting the impression that she was not all there at the moment. "That's what they were testing for in the swamps, we were all witches." She sang.

"Rime ronna ret roo outa rere" Scooby repeated.

He gave Thorn a lick on the face, a gesture that carried more meaning to his kind than human's often recognized, a gesture of loyalty. He would come back for her, and, coward that he may be, he was going to make the ones who did this to her pay dearly.

As he squeezed back into the vent, he had a sudden and terrible thought. Maggie and Madelyn had both been taken like Thorn back in March.


	26. A Magical Reunion

**Author's Note: This is Crystal from **_**Abracadabra Doo**_**, not **_**Alien Invaders**_**.**

**Part 25: A Magical Reunion**

Madelyn clasped her hand into a fist and snuffed out the fireball as her door opened. She had been practicing for close to four months now and had mastered generating and dissipating fire. Ice, of course, still presented problems, particularly getting rid of it.

Madelyn opened the door to see Maggie leaning against the hallway wall arms crossed. She breathed a sigh of relief. Maggie was the only one who knew about her powers so far. She had been about ready to tell Velma when she had been taken, but no one else.

"What is it?"

"They want to see you. The people that came here with my dad, they want to talk to you and the Wilcox sisters."

"About what?"

Maggie tilted her head. "My best guess," she jerked a finger at Madelyn's closed fist, "that."

Madelyn nodded and put her shoes on to follow Maggie downstairs. At the front of the house there was a car waiting. Madelyn's parents and the Wilcox family were there, as well as Detective Rogers.

Detective Rogers drove them into Old Coolsville and they were led into the Griffin House. Two people greeted them there. One was a burly man with long blond hair tied back in a ponytail. The other was a petit woman with coffee colored skin and flowing brown hair. They both nodded happily at Madelyn and the Wilcox sisters as they entered. Maggie hung back, her father's hand on her shoulder.

"Greetings children" the woman said. "My name is Crystal. I'm… well, this is somewhat hard to explain. I'm sure you all remember your experiences back in March. There were obviously some vagaries about exactly why you were taken. We'd like to clear those up. To put it bluntly," Crystal held her palm out and a plume of fire erupted above it, "you're witches."

"That's total bullsh…" Mister Wilcox began before Madelyn stepped forward.

"I was right." She was beaming ear to ear. She opened up her palm and generated a ball of ice."

Detective Rogers smirked. "Believe them now."

The woman kneeled down by Madelyn and gently took the ice into her own hand. She smiled at Madelyn and then shut her hand, making the ball disappear. Madelyn's eyes went wide and she let out a little laugh.

"You have to teach me how to do that."

"We will" the blond man said. Then he raised his hand in introduction. "Marlon Merlyn. I'm also with the Knights here. We've brought you because there are some aspects to being a witch that need to be addressed. It's best that we do that with you families present. In the end you will be offered a chance to train with us. It's not a recruitment, and you're not even required to join the Order, but nobody knows what it's like to be alone more than a witch, and we'd like to bring you together just to demonstrate to you that you're not alone." With that, Merlyn whistled and a young boy came running into the room.

He was Madelyn and Maggie's age, with messy black hair and dark skin. He was still wearing the same hoodie that he had been back in March, but now looked well fed and stronger than when Madelyn had last seen him.

"Fernando" Madelyn greeted.

"Doe Eyes" Fernando said smiling. "Did you know that we're witches?"

"I had gotten it yeah" she nodded.

"Fernando has been training with us since March. We thought it might be good for you to talk to one of our apprentices as assurance that we are not brainwashing your kids" Crystal said. "I know when the Order first came knocking at my door, when I was fifteen, my parents thought it was a cult."

The families were led into the sitting room and through a wardrobe that somehow led them to a monastery in somewhere very cold. Everyone except Maggie and her father, who hung back in the house.

They were taken to a meeting room and put through what could best be described as orientation. Madelyn hung on every word as Marlon and Crystal explained how their powers would grow, how they could come here to train. Then they got to the part about living longer, about how Vincent, their leader, was over a hundred and how they would reach that age as well. That left them all in a bit of a shock.

By the meeting's end everyone had at least been convinced that witches were real. There had been no commitments to the Order yet, though Madelyn's parents were at least seriously considering it, talking between themselves like they were debating whether or not to send her to a particular school.

Maggie came in a few minutes after the presentation, when Madelyn was sitting in the now empty meeting room in the monastery in the wardrobe. They had been told that it would be best for them to stay there while the current crisis was being resolved, apparently one of the other children from the incident in March had already been kidnapped and they were worried for the rest.

"So," Maggie said, "you're a witch."

"The man seemed to prefer warlock, but yeah. I'm a super long lived, not fully human, magic conductor…" she paused for a moment, "at least that was the gist of it. What about you?"

"Oh, I'm a werewolf."

Madelyn's eyes went wide and her head was physically taken aback a few inches. A ball of fire spontaneously erupted in her hand and sparked onto the table. She frantically generated ice balls, tossing them at the table until it resembled a model of the snowy peaks outside.

"What?"

"Yeah," Maggie nodded, "apparently when I grow up, my mom might have to bite me and turn me into some kind of reasonably long lived werewolf superhero."

"Alright," Madelyn nodded, "yours is better."


	27. Bread and Circuses

**"Storm" from _Elizabeth: The Golden_ Age or "Teraforming" from _Man of Steel_.**

**Part 26: Bread and Circuses**

Shaggy woke up, not really wanting his eyes to open. Sleeping had been so nice, so relaxing, even more so than usual, that it made waking up in Dracula's castle again extra unpleasant. He turned over on his side and saw Velma lying in a cot against the wall. He would have preferred that she get the bed, though frankly he did not even remember going to bed. Just what had been in those drinks?

"Morning" Scooby said from the corner of the room. His fur was disheveled and he was coated in dust.

"Morning" Shaggy said uncertainly. "Scooby, what happened last night?"

Scooby recounted the events for him, and again for Velma when she woke up halfway through his recounting. He told them about the wolves patrolling the forest, and about Thorn. Velma and Shaggy were both horrified to learn that she was being used as some kind of battery just a short air vent's walk away from them.

Before they could resolve to do anything, there was a knock at the door. Jekyll came in carrying fresh clothes for them. He tossed an armored leather vest and a set of gauntlets at Shaggy.

Shaggy caught them without thinking, taking a brief moment to marvel at his own reflexes. "Like, what are these for?"

Jekyll scratched at the back of his neck and looked down at the floor. "I beg you to forgive me. I didn't want to worry you, in fact, I wanted you to rest well last night. That was why I gave you the drinks."

Velma glared at Jekyll. "You drugged us!"

Jekyll gave a sheepish look that was entirely inadequate for the situation. "I had the best of intentions."

Velma crossed her arms and moved defensively in front of Shaggy. "You know they have a saying about the best of intentions, something to do with paving stones I believe."

"Like, I still haven't gotten an answer, why do I need armor?"

"Ah, yes, Dracula likes to have us, the strong one that is, myself, Adam, you know, fight some of his favorites, men like Knudsen and the Black Knight. He has selected you for this week's fight, against the Black Knight I'm afraid."

"So, Shaggy beat him once right?"

"Well, under mildly different circumstances, but yes, try to hold onto that thought."

Jekyll helped Shaggy lace up his armor and led him out to one of the castle's main courtyards. Rows of stadium seating had been set up around a large sandpit. Jekyll pointed Shaggy to one end of the pit and had Velma and Scooby follow him up to a viewing box. The Vampire woman from last night was also sitting there, next to a woman Shaggy presumed was another Vampire. Dracula sat between them wearing a grin that looked entirely unnatural on his pale face. Standing beside him was a tall, lean man, with dry, papery skin and hollow eyes, quite literally just sockets. Next to the dry zombie man was Griffin, sitting stock still. If it hadn't been for the floating glasses Shaggy could have sworn it was just a suit on a manikin.

As Shaggy entered his side of the ring Dracula stood up. He spread his arms wide and beckoned to the crowd. "Today we honor one of our most ancient traditions; Bloodsport. Our new werewolf Sha-gee will face off against our current champion, The Black Knight!"

A nervous cheer went up from the crowd, as though they were afraid to seem unenthusiastic, but did not really want to be there in the first place. Shaggy was reminded of an old _Star Trek _episode called _Bread and Circuses_, Velma had tried to explain the historical context of it, but it had just made Shaggy's head hurt. The gist of it though, had been that the Romans were controlled by food and entertainment, something Shaggy could relate to.

He suspected that Dracula provided his subjects with very little food, and that this form of entertainment was more for him than them. They were being kept in line less by bread and circuses and more by fear and fangs, or fear of fangs, frankly all of the thinking was making Shaggy's head hurt a little bit.

At the opposite end, the Black Knight entered the arena, beckoning to the crowd and milking the attention like that Australian guy in that gladiator movie Shaggy could never remember the name of.

The Knight stopped his performance and starred straight at Shaggy, drawing his sword and giving out a deep laugh that sounded like the reverb from a microphone. He stepped forward and, at the crowd's beckoning, so did Shaggy.

Shaggy tried to focus on his new wolf body, tried to figure out the controls. His claws went in and out, sending a weird feeling up his fingers that just made him more nervous. He began to breathe heavily, the sounds all around him echoed in his ears like he had speakers strapped to his head.

The Knight stepped forward, kicking him in the gut and sending him flying a good two meters. Shaggy landed hard in the sand, kicking up dust and inhaling it. The Knight moved closer and again kicked Shaggy, stabbing into him with the point of his armored boot. Shaggy let out a doglike whimper and curled up into a fetal position.

He was picked up by an armored hand and then slammed back into the ground. His eyes were watery, at least he hoped it was water. It certainly wasn't water dripping from his mouth. His head was pounding.

The crowd let out a gasp of horror, this time very real, and Shaggy realized that they were actually pushing for him. He had fought off this guy the day before, he was like their Superman, their Spider-Man, their Commander Cool. Shaggy straightened his arms and pushed himself up, first to a sitting position and then to a shaky stand.

The Knight sheathed his sword and raised his fists. He struck Shaggy right in the face, but Shaggy did not budge. His head and a few teeth budged, but that was beside the point. Shaggy took a shaky step forward. The corners of the Knight's faceplate went up like he was smiling. He raised his fists and beckoned at Shaggy.

Shaggy stepped forward again and spread out his fingers, wiggling them at his sides. He shot his hand forward, puncturing the armor and tearing at it with his claws. He pulled his arm back and his claws stayed set in the metal, pulling the Knight along that dirt and tossing him across the sandpit.

Shaggy got down on all fours and bounded at his opponent, pouncing at the last minute and locking his claws into the armored ghost's sides. He gnashed his teeth at the empty helmet, the green mist swirling away from each snap. The Knight got an arm up and pounded it into Shaggy's face, launching him across the pit. Up in the balcony Dracula smiled.

Shaggy stood up and cracked his neck. He could feel the wounds healing, bones snapping back into place. The crowd gasped, a couple of them actually stood up as Shaggy stepped forward, striding confidently. The Knight shot out another fist but Shaggy caught it and twisted his arm around, bending the armor. Excited muttering swept through the audience.

In spite of this, Shaggy could feel the strength fading. He wanted to be a hero for these people, but the back of his brain, the wolfy bit, was telling him that he had nothing to defend but himself. It seemed like his fight reflex kicked in when others were in danger, but otherwise he was a flight man all the way. He could feel the Knight gaining ground under his arm. Shaggy looked up at the crowd. They were all so hopeful, maybe not just because he was some superhero to them, but because if he put this walking museum piece out of commission they could rest a little easier. Shaggy tried telling that to the wolf bit, telling it that he was defending them.

The strength returned. The armor bent beneath his arms and Shaggy pushed the Knight down to the ground. The crowd cheered and Dracula scowled.

"Like, you can't die can you?"

"No" The Knight sneered.

"Like," Shaggy grunted as he lifted the sword, "good."

He drove the sword through the middle of the armor and deep into the ground, pinning his apponent. Shaggy stood up as the villagers erupted into applause. He smirked and then held his arms out toward them and put his leg up on the struggling armor. He thought that maybe he should say something to them.

"Like, uh," he mumbled, "Like can you dig it?!"

The crowd went wild. If Shaggy's wolf hearing had not already begun to fade that would have floored him. He looked out across the audience, picking out human villagers and some of the creatures he had seen in the pub. Adam and his wife were cheering for him, as were Jekyll and Lucy. Velma and Scooby were shouting and howling and generally being as obnoxious as possible given that they had the _honor _of sitting with Dracula himself.

The old vampire looked down at Shaggy, his face blank and still. His eyes seemed to lock right onto Shaggy, burning right through him. After a few seconds, Shaggy realized that he was not uncomfortable, but literally being burned. Reluctantly, he lowered his arms and hurried to the edge of the ring, feeling the heat of Dracula's stare the whole way.


	28. Preparations

**Part 27: Preparation**

Dracula ran his fingers over the stones that made up his topmost tower. It was at this highest point in his kingdom that the final ritual would come to pass. Krudsky and Ravencroft were preparing the area even now, drawing out the sacred symbols and setting up candles in the proper positions. Griffin's little witch battery would supply enough power when the time came. Imhotep had the spells prepared, and only awaited Dracula's command. All that remained was to acquire the key and the chest. The Knights of Van Helsing had worked quickly enough, once they had found everything Knudsen would be able to retrieve it.

Footsteps came from the stairwell below. Dracula smelled Griffin ascending. Of all the men under Dracula's command, all the psychos like Knudsen, the coerced like Jekyll, Griffin was the only one who worked with his full mental faculties. It made Dracula distrustful. He knew that he was a terror to behold. Some succumbed to it, some enjoyed it, but Griffin was unaffected.

"You must recognize my concerns about the boy now?" Griffin said.

Dracula turned look at Griffin face to emptiness. "He is becoming bothersome, I will admit. You were so certain the fight would break him."

"He sees himself as their hero, the great foolishness of his kind. They're too dumb to know when they're useless. If we keep letting him fight, the little wolf brain will make him do it until either he's dead or we are."

Dracula cocked his head at Griffin and bared his fangs ever so slightly. "You have such faith in my army?"

"It's a remote possibility I'll admit, but the simple truth is that we cannot afford to lose him."

"Then maybe fighting is not the key. We can break neither his body, nor the wolf spirit within him, but there is still a scared, cowardly little boy playing host to that spirit, and he can be broken."

"As you wish master." Griffin bowed and the tone of his voice made it clear that he was smiling. He departed down the stairs.

Dracula put both hands on the edge of the tower and look down into the courtyard below. First he would have the boy open the chest and then they would march.

"Are you ready my children?" He shouted down. "The time is nearly at hand!"

A great braying arose from the courtyard. Dracula's army hollered in an animal frenzy, raising bony clawed arms and baring hideous fanged mouths.


	29. Cordially Invited

**Part 28: Cordially Invited**

Velma hugged Shaggy tightly once they were safely back in the room. When she reluctantly pulled away she found little bits of fur stuck to her shirt. Shaggy gave her a sheepish look but she brushed them away and threw back her head in laughter.

Scooby jumped up on the bed to look Shaggy face to face and then pounced at him playfully, laughing the whole time.

Shaggy for his part just looked tired. He sat down on the bed and propped himself up against the headboard. Velma sat next to him and Scooby curled up at their feet.

"They really loved you" Velma said smiling. "They went wild when you won, I don't even think they knew what you were saying," she paused, "what were you saying; _can you dig it_?" She arched an eyebrow. "What is that?"

Shaggy rolled his eyes. "Like, you've never seen _Warriors_?"

Velma shook her head. "What's Warriors?"

"It's a movie, these guys, The Warriors, go to this meeting of all the street gangs and somebody kills Cyrus, the head of the big gang, and The Warriors get blamed and they have to fight all the way back to their home turf by the beach."

"That's just _Anabasis_, it's Greek."

"No I'm pretty sure it was an American movie."

Velma laughed and took Shaggy's hand. "It's an ancient Greek story. Nothing new under the sun, I guess."

"That's pretty" Shaggy said staring into Velma's eyes. "Like, how'd you come up with that?"

Velma laughed again as she returned Shaggy's gaze. "It's Sherlock Holmes."

"Oh" Shaggy leaned forward. "Well, you're pretty."

"You're so corny"

"I know."

Scooby leaped off the bed, wishing the room had more… rooms. Shaggy kissed Velma, confident that this time she would not run away like the last two times he had kissed a girl. Then came a knock at their door.

Velma grumbled and crossed the room to answer it. On opening the door, a lesser person might have screamed. Velma Dinkley was above that, she yelped. A man, probably just a little under six feet but hunched to about half that stood in the hallway. He had sparse patches of hair all across his body, clearly visible under the dirtied tunic he was clothed it. His nose and mouth were broken and elongated just enough to make him look like a long nosed pug. His teeth were all either broken or pointed.

"Invitation" he snarled, startling Velma with the familiarity of his voice.

"Like do we know you?" Shaggy said, sliding off the bed and hobbling over.

The man-thing glared at Shaggy. "You used to, but you don't remember. You caught me, imprisoned me, and this is the price for failure. Griffin cut me open and tried to make me like you. They call me Wolfgang now. They think it's funny. But you still don't remember me do you Norville? I was your daddy's boss."

Shaggy's eyes grew to the size of saucers. "Captain Packard?"

"Dracula expects you in the main hall at seven thirty, don't be late, formal wear will be provided."

The creature that had once been Police Captain Harold Packard shambled away, muttering to himself. Velma clutched the invitation in her hand.

_You are cordially invited to a humble gathering in celebration of your victory. We are dying to see you_

_ Dracula_


	30. Dreaming of Oakhaven

**"Fireside Dance" from _Oz the Great and Powerful_.**

**Part 29: Dreaming of Oakhaven**

Kate reclined in the seat of the old plane. Van Ghoul and Rachael were up front flying. Sam was still keeping his distance out of respect. Though after the incident at the castle, maybe she was starting to see his point about keeping her away from everything, not agree, but understand. Fletcher had fixed up her shoulder, though the bite still stung. She had been too weak initially to teleport back, so Van Ghoul, Fred, and Daphne had come by plane to pick them up.

"So we've got five pieces of this key, Dracula has one, and the last is still MIA?" Fred asked to no one in particular.

"Plus the chest" Daphne shrugged.

"We're still winning" Fletcher said. "And as long as Dracula can't open the chest he won't kill the boy."

The conversation continued but Kate was too tired to pay attention. She laid her head back and eventually drifted off to sleep. She did not dream about Seamus O'Flannery or the castle anymore. Instead she dreamed that she was in high school again. She was up on the rings practicing her gymnastic routine for the competition Saturday. She flipped over one more time and then leaped away. Kate readied herself for the landing and an incredible pain shot through her.

She had a sudden glimpse of a street corner in Manhattan, an out of control truck, a helpless little girl, and then just pain. Kate fell hard, twisting her ankle. Tears flowed freely, but not from the injury, something else, something unexplainable.

Then, suddenly Kate was in the nurse's office, an ice pack on her ankle. She wiped away her tears as the door opened. Her parents walked in. Kate was just about to tell them off for overreacting when it became apparent to her that the grief in their faces had nothing to do with her twisted ankle. She knew, though she would never tell anyone, but she knew even before they told her, Simon was gone.

Kate remembered that she would be driven home, that she would cry in her room for days, and that she would barely remember leaving the house for the funeral. But then none of that happened. She found herself standing in the entrance hall of her old house, still a teenager, big poufy eighties hair and brightly colored sweater. Simon stood across from her, white t-shirt and jeans, hands in his pockets, looking more like a mechanic than a medical student.

"Come home Katie" he said.

"I can't" Kate sobbed. "We need to find the chest, my son…"

"Come home, come home."

Kate's eyes shot open. She looked around at the others, still talking amongst themselves. They all looked at her and she realized that she had gasped a bit when she woke up. She let herself calm down for a moment.

"I think I know where the chest is."


	31. The Ball

**"Just Follow my Lead" from _Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows _or "All Hallow's Eve Ball" from _Van Helsing_.**

**Part 30: The Ball**

Shaggy and Velma put on the suit and dress they had been given about an hour before the ball. Neither had any inclination to party, but Velma reasoned that it would be a good opportunity to scout out the castle, and Shaggy reasoned that Dracula would hurt them if they did not go, of course he was just as likely to hurt them if they did.

Shaggy checked himself in the mirror and realized with a small amount of horror that he was beginning to get used to his werewolf appearance. He barely looked twice at the otherwise absurd visage of a werewolf in a dark green Victorian suit. However, he did look twice at Velma, who had been given an equally Victorian gown in which she looked stunning. Shaggy had to stop himself from starring.

For her part, Velma was partially embarrassed and partially loving it. As a lifelong Sherlock Homes fan, the chance to play Victorian Lady for a night was something of a dream come true. The kidnapping and vampires had never been part of that dream, not usually.

Scooby jumped off of the bed and trotted over to the grate that lead to Thorn's cell. Velma walked over and knelt down beside him. She had already checked and knew that it was too small to fit through. The plan was for Scooby to sneak in while they were on their way out and, presuming the room was empty, scratch at the door as they walked down the halls, showing them which room it was. After that Velma would have to come up with another plan for the rescue itself.

She absently wondered at her chances of finding a bunch of garlic somewhere in the castle. Whatever happened, she had resolved to either escape the castle or die trying. She wondered how Buffy had made killing vampires look so easy when just being near Dracula earlier that day had made her skin burn.

Shaggy held out his arm. "Like, ready to go." His voice grew gruffer every day, Velma wondered if it would ever get to the point that he would no longer be able to talk. She took his arm and they went out the door.

From inside the room they heard the sound of Scooby wiggling himself into the vent. They walked slowly, methodically but inconspicuously listening at each door they passed. Two down, three, nothing. Velma could not imagine that the vent went that far, figuring that it might be around one of the corners, hoping that it was at least on their way to the ballroom.

One corner and three doors down Velma head Scooby scratching and chattering behind the door. She gave a prearranged knock to let him know she had heard. He was to return to the room now and stay until she and Shaggy returned.

Velma had half a mind to break Thorn out now, but she knew they had to be smart about this. She would have to study her captors and formulate and escape plan, hopefully one that did not involve the battle couple fight stylings of Daphne and Fred. Both of them, Velma mused, would probably have just charged right up to Dracula, letting him have a taste of whatever knives or improvised weapons they would scrounge up.

Velma held onto those thoughts as they rounded the last corner into the ballroom. Shaggy gripped her arm tighter as they laid eyes on their fellow partygoers. None of them were humans like in the village. A few members of the band from the pub were playing a waltz and not looking too happy about it. The rest were an odd assortment on humans and other creatures that Velma could only describe as demons.

Jekyll was standing off in the corner, trying not to make eye contact with anyone. Velma and Shaggy moved towards him. The waltz picked up and the partygoers paired off. Suddenly gruesome pairs of dancers were blocking the way across the room. Velma and Shaggy stopped, arms still linked, and stared at the twisted scene.

"Sha-gee" Someone said. They turned to see Dracula gliding towards them, clothed in a frilly Elizabethan suit that, among all the guests, looked both the most sophisticated and the most horrifying. "Vilma" he greeted, nodding at Velma. "I am so glad you could make it."

His accent was noticeable, but never distracting from his words. Indeed he spoke English better than anyone Velma had ever met, almost too perfectly. Like everything else about the legendary count, it was discomforting.

"We were just going to speak with Doctor Jekyll." Velma said coldly.

"No" Dracula said. "I insist you dance. It is a party after all."

"Like, I don't…" Shaggy started. Dracula laid a hand on his shoulder. Shaggy looked sick at the Count's touch.

"I insist."

Velma glared at Dracula one last time before she led Shaggy out onto the dance floor. She had, exactly once in her life, taken dancing lessons, and it had been for a case. Shaggy had not participated in that part of the investigation.

"Ow" Velma squeaked as Shaggy hit her toe.

"Like, sorry, the floor's kinda slippery."

_How would you know _Velma thought, _you've been dancing on my feet_. Of course what she said was "it's fine" and then added, "just try to be more careful."

About midway through the waltz Velma reflected that, having developed a crush on Shaggy over the past few years, dancing with him at a fancy Victorian themed ball should have been a dream come true. Perhaps if she could just ignore the awful creatures around them… no. She could not afford to ignore anything. There would be plenty of time to enjoy dancing with Shaggy later, once they were safe. Now was a time for observation.

Admittedly that was not easy with Shaggy putting what seemed to be his entire body weight on her. Apparently his lack of width was made up for by his height. She pushed him up, muttering curses in German, a habit of hers ever since childhood, when her parents had tried to self-censor by speaking in other languages.

It was useless, Shaggy seemed determined to move against her, prompting Velma to wonder if now was really the time. She looked up at him and suddenly was aware of his unfocused eyes, and the fact that his head was just as limp as the rest of him. His feet were dragging now and Velma stopped dancing. She held her head close to his mouth. He was breathing, but it was shallow. It was then that she noticed a small red stain on his shoulder, right where Dracula had patted him.

From across the room she locked eyes with Jekyll. He ran over to them just as Velma laid Shaggy down on the floor. Jekyll sniffed at the small wound and then looked up at Velma, his face filled with urgency.

"It's a monkshood compound."

"Wolf's Bane" Velma gasped.

"Toxic to humans but doubly so to creatures of magic."

"Dracula did this. He poisoned him" Velma said coldly.

"I don't doubt it." Jekyll began removing Shaggy's jacket and shirt, trying to get at the wound. "But for him to even touch it…" Jekyll trailed off. "That takes commitment."

At the sound of his name Dracula walked over to them, flanked by Griffin on one side and a snarling, scarred gray wolf. He bent over Shaggy and Jekyll, smiling in a way that showed off his fangs.

"Has poor Sha-gee fallen ill."

"Danced himself to death I'd say." Griffin laughed at his own cleverness.

Velma moved to stand, a string of curses ready. Jekyll put a hand on her shoulder and pulled her back down. Dracula seemed to notice none of this. He was talking to them but both had stopped listening.

"I can help him, but I need ingredients from my lab."

"Tell me what you need."

Jekyll shook his head. "You can't possibly remember it all."

"Yes I can."

Jekyll relented, giving her directions to the lab and the list of ingredients and how to prepare them. Velma took detailed mental notes and moved to leave. Jekyll grabbed her arm.

"We may need someone else to help guard him while you're gone." He cast his eyes around the room at the various creatures salivating over Shaggy's prone form.

Velma nodded, and then, still holding Shaggy in her arms lifted her head to the sky and shouted "Scooby Doo, where are you?"

Dracula suddenly stopped talking, just now aware that nobody was listening to his proposal that he would cure Shaggy if he agreed to serve him unquestioningly. Instead he looked toward the hall where there was a great commotion. Guards and guests were scattering as Scooby Doo bounded into the ballroom. The wolf at Dracula's side lunged at him but Scooby slid across the floor, comfortably beneath his attacker. He ran up to Shaggy and Velma.

"Guard him" Velma said simply.

Scooby nodded and paced around Shaggy, baring his canines at all who looked at his unconscious friend. Velma took off out of the room and down the hall. Dracula looked at the scene, reflecting that no plan was a failure immediately. He held his hand out to Griffin who handed him a small black remote. Jekyll gasped in horror as Dracula pushed the button. He fell to the ground next to Shaggy, writhing in pain.

Meanwhile out in the hall, Velma ran for the lab. Rights and lefts shot past her. She had her skirt bundled up in her hands and had cast her shoes away as soon as she had started. She was too frantic to mind the eerie calm of the castle, or the faint scuttling that seemed to follow her wherever she went.

She found the lab in record time and set to work on the antidote. The ingredients were already prepared and she had a feeling that Dracula had an antidote on hand for blackmail purposes.

"Not today" she said out loud. She would not let that beast have any more power over her friend.

She finished the medicine and poured it into a glass vial, shutting it with a rubber stopper. Turning to leave Velma finally became aware of the scuttling. She turned sharply as a shadow passed across the wall. A man was entering the lab, skinny and hunched. A cane was swinging in his hand and he was singing to himself.

"Oh you should see me dance the polka…" He trailed off when he saw Velma. "Hello love" he said.

"Oh my god" Velma mumbled to herself. She saw the exposed mechanism grafted to the man's neck, and the clothes, it was all plain to see.

"Jekyll? Henry?"

"Henry's not here right now" the man growled, confirming Velma's fears. "I'm Edward."

"Hyde" Velma scowled.

Hyde smiled, showing off a mouthful of crooked yellow teeth. "Give me the vial love, then we can go back to the _party_." He winked at her and she wanted to throw up.

Daphne would have had something witty to say. Fred probably would have had a movie quote. Velma just ran. The lab had a second door and she shot through it, Hyde at her heels. He started to sing again as he chased her down the halls. His cane tapped against the stonework, creating that scuttling sound Velma had heard earlier.

She turned a corner and ducked into another room, vial still clutched tightly in her hand. She could hear Jekyll trotting down the hallway. To him this was nothing more than a game, a cat playing with its food. He was stronger than her no doubt, but not smarter than her. Jekyll was the genius, Hyde was just a brute. Velma was seized with a plan.

She yanked the stopper out of the vial and held it to her mouth. She kept her mouth closed, just letting the liquid spill against her lips. When she had taken on as much as she could she closed it up again and threw open the door.

Hyde was standing there, leaning against the wall, swinging his cane. Velma wasted no time tossing the glass container at his face. He staggered back as it shattered. She thought that he must not know exactly what it was. He tried to slap it off of himself like it was acid.

Velma put her hand over her mouth and ran back to the ballroom. It did not take long for her to find it. She just followed the music. Dracula must be making the band play again. She hoped that did not mean she was too late.

Back in the hallway Hyde had recovered, realizing that the solution was harmless to his skin. With any luck he had swallowed some. That was the reason Velma was so careful to keep her mouth shut. The ingredients in the antidote would neutralize the poison, but they would also… Velma heard a body slam to the ground behind her… they would also cause some drowsiness.

She ran into the ballroom where Scooby was still pacing in a circle around Shaggy, growling at anyone who got too close. She was amazed that most of the creatures leering hungrily at Shaggy seemed to be taking him seriously. Then she noticed one already on the floor, clutching a wounded leg and howling in pain. _Good dog,_ she thought.

Velma kneeled down next to Shaggy. Dracula grinned, noticing that there was no antidote in her hands. She leaned over him and kissed him, letting the liquid from her lips drip into his open mouth. She counted as she watched it roll down his throat, hoping it was enough. Dracula looked smug.

Then Shaggy stirred. He coughed and sat up, lupine fire in his eyes. All of the creatures back away another step. The band began to play a bit louder, clearly cheered by his sudden revival. Dracula scowled.

He picked up Shaggy by the collar, finished with underhanded manipulations. He opened his mouth, showing off his fangs. He put Shaggy's head to the side and made for his neck. Then he stopped. There was smoke coming off of his skin. Dracula recoiled, dropping Shaggy, who had already been knocked out by the medicine, to the ground.

The musicians stopped. One of them whispered "The Hound of God has burned him."

Dracula looked at his own smoking hands and then back at Shaggy. "To the dungeons with all three of them. They will stay there until it is time."

As the guards moved to take them away, Dracula noticed the chain around Shaggy's neck. He snatched it away, breaking the metal with his bare hands. Velma moved to take back Shaggy's ring, but Dracula pushed her away. He stared at the ring and smiled again. Then he walked away with it, leaving the guards to drag Shaggy, Scooby, and Velma to the dungeons.


	32. O'Flannery Manor

**John Debney's "Phantom Manor Suite."**

**Part 31: O'Flannery Manor**

It had been quite a trip into Oakhaven. They could not just land the plane there, so they had had to drive in through unseasonably pouring rain. Storm clouds were gathering above the town and people had retreated inside. Small shops lined a town square that consisted, rather grimly, of a graveyard. A large oak tree was set into the middle of the cemetery, with headstones and other grave markers radiating around it.

Farther down the road, up on a hill, was a large mansion. It was all built from red brick that had since faded somewhat. A winding path led up a set of steps and a front door that was padlocked shut. A dried up fountain and gazebo completed the sad image. Fred tried to imagine what it must have been like when Mrs. Rogers had lived here, but could not see how it had been habitable any time in the last thirty years.

At the door, Kate produced a key from her usual key ring and opened the padlock. Before she put the key away again, she looked at it like it had just given her bad news. Fred wondered just how long she had been carrying it around. She breathed heavily and pushed the door open with a creaking sound so loud everyone was sure it would alert the neighborhood.

They walked inside, immediately hit in the face with a wall of mustiness. The entire building seemed to exhale a cloud of dust as soon as the door was opened. Everyone covered their mouths. Sam and Rachael both flipped small knives in their hands. Fletcher and Van Ghoul tried to summon fire in their hands like they had before, but it seemed that the house would not have it. The lights were dim and unhelpful, only giving off sickly glows.

Fred and Daphne kept an eye on Mrs. Rogers, who glided through the entrance hall toward one end of a large double staircase. Steps wound up to a mezzanine that overlooked the room. Daphne and Fred locked hands. This was a place where they most certainly did not want to split up.

"We should separate" Fletcher announced. "Better chance of covering the whole house. If she's right and the chest is here, you'll feel it when you're near it."

"And be careful" Van Ghoul added. "There is dark energy here. Something in this place is watching us."

"Thanks Commander Creepy" Fred mumbled as he and Daphne made their way upstairs.

John and Sam took the staff quarters, Rachael and Kate went up to the backyard and Van Ghoul went up to the attic. That left Fred and Daphne to check the bedrooms. It was a long walk, filled with portraits of dead O'Flanneries with eyes that followed them as they walked. Fred and Daphne both gripped each other's hands tighter.

Dust muffled their footsteps as they came into a long hallway, studded with bedroom doors. Fred reluctantly released Daphne's hand and opened the first one. A gust of cold hit them. They looked up to see the window smashed in, glass almost caked to dust on the floor.

It did not look like anyone had used the room in years, certainly not Kate or her brother. The newest thing in there was a phonograph. Daphne wound it up out of curiosity and laid the needle down on the record. Scratchy singing, and a considerable amount of dust came up. It was an opera of some kind. A lone woman wailed, the music drifting through the house. Daphne wrinkled her nose as she lifted the needle… and the music kept playing.

Fred and Daphne wasted no time turning to the door, only to see it slam shut on them.

"What the hell?" Fred said in a quivering voice as he tried to pull it open to no avail.

Daphne looked at the door, rusted hinges, rotted wood. She had seen a million like it in Blake Hall and Chateau Maxwell. Things like this were doors only by the strictest definition, ghost powered or not it was still just a hunk of old wood. She kicked at it and it flew off its hinges, striking the opposite wall and splintering into a million pieces.

She grabbed Fred's hand and ran back down the hall. The record was still playing but the sound had become sharper. They both looked back and their breathing stopped for minute. The phonograph was shattered on the floor, but rising up from the wood was a pale woman. She had a face like Kate's, but was dressed in a poufy Victorian dress with her hair done up in little ringlets. She sang, swaying her head to the music. She was also completely transparent and floating an inch off the ground.

"No freaking way." Daphne said, eyes growing wider by the minute.

They continued running and the woman glided after them. It was only when they reached the main hall and looked down from the mezzanine that they realized the woman was not chasing them, not even following them. There were more specters gathering in the main hall, dressed in clothes ranging from the 1860's to the modern day. They paired off, one man and one woman, and stood in a line facing the door.

John and Sam, Van Ghoul, and Rachael all emerged from their searches, ghosts in tow. Sam ran forward as Kate shuffled into the entrance hall. Fletcher grabbed him, keeping him from her as she walked down the row of spirits, coming to a stop at the front next to a skinny young man. A young man that Fred and Daphne recognized from New York.

"What's going on?" Sam shouted, struggling against Fletcher's grip.

"It's a family reunion" Van Ghoul said. "Something has been keeping the spirits of her ancestors here, waiting. Now that she has returned, with the wolf inside of her, they can commence doing whatever they have been waiting for."

The pairs held hands, leading all the way up to Kate and her brother. They marched out the door and down the hill. The rest of the living ran out after them. It was so dark out from the storm that the spirits almost glowed. Rain splashed through them, only bouncing off of Kate. She shuffled along with them like she was in a trance, down the hill and through the town.

At the cemetery they turned, stopping at the wrought iron gate. The ghost of Simon O'Flannery said something to Kate, kissed her on the forehead and opened the gate for her. The others stayed back.

"Why aren't they following her?" Fred asked.

"They can't cross the iron" Van Ghoul answered. "That's why they needed her, a living O'Flannery."

Kate shuffled through the headstones to a large mausoleum. The name _O'Flannery _was carved into the marble above the door. Sam ran in before Fletcher could grab him again. Fred and Daphne glanced at each other and then followed. They crept lightly into down into the vault. Kate was kneeling at the lowest level, using a candelabra to smash her way into one of the crypts. A placard on the front read _Alexander O'Flannery_.

She pulled the casket out, lifting it with strength that her lithe frame did not indicate she had, and set it down on the floor. Fred, Daphne, and Sam watched as she lifted the lid and reached inside, pulling out a large, red chest. Iron bracings held the crimson wood together and a lock on the front, sculpted in the shape of a horned demon latched it shut. They eyes seemed to glow and Fred and Daphne swore they heard whispering voices, beckoning to be freed.

"Good God" Sam let slip, glancing down at his mouth as though it now had a mind of its own.

Kate walked toward them, or rather, toward the stairs. She passed them without acknowledgement and ascended the steps back into the open air. Fred, Daphne, and Sam followed, all three now stunned stupid.

Outside it was dawn and light was just creeping up to the trees. The rain was still going, but the clouds seemed to be moving. They swirled and coalesced above Kate and her relatives. Kate set the chest down in front of the ghost of her brother. He kneeled down and examined it and then looked up at her and nodded.

"Good job Katie."

Kate's eyes welled up with tears and snapped back into focus. She threw her arms around the ghostly image and he responded in kind without missing a beat. They stayed that way until the sun finally illuminated the square and Kate's assembled ancestors shimmered and faded, like projections in a lit room.

Sam walked up to Kate and put his arms around her and this time she did not pull away or push him back. She did not accuse him of lying or betrayal, she just sobbed into his shoulder as he stroked her hair tenderly.

"It's okay" He whispered. "They're at peace. Your brother's at peace."

"They've gone" Van Ghoul said, looking down at the chest. "Their work in this world is done. I expect that when your family came to America, there was no chance for the lycanthropy to be passed on. As a result your ancestors have stayed here, protecting the chest as best as possible without their power. With you here, the circle was complete. We have the chest, and a good many of the key fragments. We have the bargaining chips to retrieve your son."

Fletcher pulled the key fragments out of his coat pocket. Van Ghoul stared at him worriedly.

"Jonathan, why did you bring those?"

Fletcher stared at his hand like it was a snake slithering over his shoulder. "I…" He paused. "I don't know."

"I do" A voice sneered from across the street.

Two men stood staring at them. They were the men from the opera house, Ravencroft and Knudsen. They had a black van parked behind them with the doors wide open. Immediately Fletcher and Van Ghoul cast spells in their direction. Ravencroft deflected them, and in return beckoned with both hands. The key fragments, the chest, and Kate shot across the street, all attempts to grab them proving futile. Ravencroft caught the fragments and Knudsen caught Kate, grabbing her around the waist and neck and standing much too close for comfort.

The moment Knudsen laid hands on Kate, Sam pulled his gun and fired, sending bullet after bullet hurtling toward the man with pinpoint accuracy. Three bullets made their mark and found Knudsen's head. He just smiled as sand poured from the wounds before closing back up. He tossed Kate into the van and shut the doors before hopping into the driver's seat. Ravencroft followed on the other side. The car began pulling away. As it did, a fireball shot from the window, colliding with their rental and melting it to slag.

"What the hell just happened?"

"The must have hexed the key" Fletcher said, barely keeping it together. "That's why they made it so easy for us in Paris. It compelled me to bring it. It was so subtle I didn't even notice. I knew there was something off about that!"

"So what do we do?" Fred shouted at the group at large. "They're getting away!"

Fletcher was kneeling down by the side of the road, his hand hovering above the ground. "Did you know Kate's family kept horses?" He said absently, his focus all on his hand. "I noticed when we searched the house. Remarkable creatures, horses, loyal. And loyalty is a power that transcends death. _Surge, servos fideles. Tu dominae, indiget._"

The ground began to shake, focused far off in the distance, back by the house. A thunderous clapping sounded from the pavement and light burned along the road. Four horses, nothing but bones and spectral flesh, with fiery eyes and steaming snouts, galloped up to the group. They stopped and waited, looking at the non-wizards who stood amazed.

"Get on" Fletcher ordered.

"What about you two?" Daphne asked, noticing Fletcher and Van Ghoul standing away from the steeds.

"We're witches" Fletcher smirked. "We have our own rides."

Two broomsticks flew from the O'Flannery house, right into the hands of Fletcher and Van Ghoul. They mounted them, hovering expectantly. That galvanized the others into mounting their horses as well.

"All right" Sam grunted, staring down the road the van had taken off on. "Let's ride."


	33. Ghost Riders

"**Ghost Riders in the Sky" from the**_** Ghost Rider **_**movie (yes, that version).**

**Part 32: Ghost Riders**

Fred glanced over at Daphne as they thundered down the forested road that led out of Oakhaven, their spectral horses galloping faster than any living horse could. She had been trained in riding probably since she could walk, one of the perks of money. Fred had ridden a few times in his life though. He was descended from western settlers and frontier marshalls. True he had taken the flight lessons, and boxing. He was adept at rigging traps and explosives, but at heart Freddy Jones had always been something of a cowboy.

He snapped the reins and the horse whinnied, an interesting phenomenon as it had no vocal cords. The horse sped up. Daphne smirked coyly at him and followed suit. Up above, Fletcher and Van Ghoul had been searching for the van, and just moments ago they had sighted it. Fred and Daphne were to hit it from the back while Sam and Rachael struck from the sides.

It came into view quickly, all shiny black metal. Fred could just make out the reflection of Knudsen in the rearview mirror. He saw his arm dangling out the window in trucker fashion. But Knudsen noticed them too. He craned his head out the window and gave an impressed whistle, just before half his head erupted in a blast of sand. That would have been disturbing if he were a normal human.

Rachael and Sam burst from the trees on the sides of the road, Sam with his revolver, Rachael with a shotgun. Fletcher and Van Ghoul swooped low and strafed the road ahead with fireballs. The plan was to melt their tires, leaving the undead horses free to surround them through the flames. Knudsen would have none of that.

He opened the driver's side door and climbed out onto the roof of the van, wood axe swinging at his hip, wide brimmed hat somehow staying on his head, and duster billowing in the wind. The bit of his face that had come apart was already reforming.

"Whoohoo!" He howled at the top of his lungs. "What a party!"

Sam grimaced and took aim with his pistol. Knudsen uncoiled a whip from beneath his coat and snapped it at Sam's arm. It wrapped around the gun and Knudsen jerked it towards him. He caught it and leveled it off at Sam.

Without thinking (quite a specialty of his) Fred leapt from his horse and caught onto the back of the van's roof. He clambered up and tackled Knudsen, throwing them both to the roof's surface. He went for the gun first, wrestling it from the impossible man's grip. Then, uncomfortable with shooting him, Fred struck Knudsen across the face with the butt of the revolver.

"Oh, you couldn't send your girlfriend to play" Knudsen pouted. "That'd been more fun."

Fred hit him again, harder.

Down below, Daphne had come up to the back doors of the van. She pulled her kukri from its sheath on her hip and jammed it into the lock. There was a satisfying sound of metal cracking under fine Tibetan steel and the door swung open. Daphne pulled back on her horse, remembering the last time she had done this.

Kate stared out at her from inside the van. Her hands were tied in front of her and her mouth was gagged. But when she saw Daphne beckoning her forward she stood up and jumped. She almost made it too. But a fireball from Ravencroft made her jump sideways, sending her careening for asphalt.

Sam shot back, away from the side of the van. His arm still bleeding from the whip, he caught Kate and heaved her onto the back of his horse. By now she had managed to spit out her gag and used her newly freed mouth to kiss her husband in a way that made it plain that all was forgiven between them.

Daphne, while happy that Shaggy's parents had made up, was slightly put out by having to dodge fireballs now. Van Ghoul swooped to the passenger window of the van and grabbed Ravencroft by the collar. Daphne expected a spell or a hex, instead Van Ghoul thrust his head forward and struck Ravencroft into unconsciousness.

Back up on the van Fred was pulling at the whip, trying not to let it touch his neck, at which point Knudsen would either snap it, or choke him to death, whichever came first. He saw the revolver sliding towards the edge of the van. He lunged for it, pulling Knudsen with him. Below the van swerved, sending them to opposite sides of the roof. Fred closed his fingers around the gun and barely stopped himself from falling off. He turned to Knudsen, who had drawn his axe, and fired the remaining three bullets the gun still possessed. He could see steam pouring from the wounds, and remembered Sam's spiel about how these were special bullets, made of all the things that kill bogeymen. It was a moot point now though, Fred was out and Knudsen was reforming.

"Daphne!" Fletcher shouted down. "Toss me your knife."

Daphne complied, throwing the knife into the air. Fletcher caught it perfectly by the hilt. Flames erupted from his fingers and crept into the metal, pulsating within the blade. Fletcher tossed it down to Fred, who fumbled, but caught it none the less. Already moving forward from the catch, Fred shoved the knife into Knudsen's chest. The flames left the blade and began moving through the man. His skin glowed as it burned with whatever magical fire Fletcher had infused it with. Fred could see the grains of sand that made up whatever this man was. They poured from the wound, but instead of healing, they began to warp and then solidify. All across the man's body he was burning and the grains inside him were turning crystalline. The last thing Fred saw before he jumped away from the van, Daphne's knife tucked into his belt, was the glass form of Knudsen shattering as it hit the highway. It was an image he would never forget.

Everyone dismounted off to the side, hiding in the trees. The smoking remains of the van would start to attract attention soon and nobody wanted to be there with the zombie horses when it did.

Fred sat down on a nearby log, still shaking. Daphne sat next to him and put her arms around him. He allowed himself to lean on her, allowed her to help him deal with what had just happened. Nearby Sam and Kate were making out like a couple of teenagers.

Rachael stood watch while her husband and Van Ghoul went back to the van to retrieve the key and chest. They returned in a matter of minutes, conspicuously empty handed.

"We got conned" Fletcher hissed, flames licking his fingertips.

"What?" Fred and Daphne both stood up.

"They never had the chest when we started chasing them. They probably teleported it out the minute they got into the van. It's why they took Kate. They needed a distraction."

"Krudsky" Rachael spat. "Once a bloody stage magician always a bloody stage magician."

"So then what do we do?" Fred asked, taking a shaky stance. Daphne stood with him and steadied him.

"I…" Van Ghoul began. "I don't know. Nobody has ever made an incursion into Dracula's realm before, not without some form of assistance. When my father and mother did it my mother had been bitten. She had a piece of Dracula's soul festering inside of her and it provided a connection that the court witches of the time used to create a portal into his realm."

"Wow, they left a lot out of the book." Daphne mumbled.

Kate's eyes widened. She stepped forward, tapping her head rhythmically. Sam looked worriedly from Kate to Van Ghoul and Fletcher. Kate stopped in the middle of the clearing, her face breaking into a broad grin.

"A connection."

"Fill us in any time honey" Sam said.

She turned to the group and tapped her head again. "Your mother had a psychic connection, to Dracula, that let them travel right?"

"It created an anchor point for a portal yes?"

"Wait" Sam scrunched his face. "Your mother…"

"Mina Harker from the book" Fred said.

Sam's jaw hung open and he pointed at Van Ghoul. "You're…"

"Not relevant right now" Van Ghoul hissed.

Kate continued. "If I had a psychic link to someone in Dracula's realm, would that work?"

"If the link was strong enough" Van Ghoul began offhandedly before comprehension dawned. "Oh, oh that's very good."

Sam turned to Fletcher. "I still don't know what's going on."

Fletcher shrugged.

Van Ghoul looked around at everyone. "Their breed of werewolf is characterized by a group dynamic not seen in others. They have links to each other, little bits of a soul that get passed down from generation to generation. The first werewolf from her line left a little bit of his soul in each that came after, which means that Katherine and her children share a bit of that soul. It's what allowed the dreams, it's what allowed the experience at O'Flannery Manor. We can use Katherine as an anchor point to open a portal to her son."

"You're talking about a full scale assault?" Rachael said crossing her arms. "It can't be done."

"No" Van Ghoul conceded. "But a small incursion, you, myself, Johnathan…" he pointed at Fred and Daphne. "You two as well, we'll need familiar faces on the team."

"What about me?" Sam said taking a step forward. "It's my son in there."

"Samuel, Dracula is nothing if not strategic. His attacks on our holdings earlier this month indicates a greater offensive. He wants our response capabilities crippled. If he succeeds in opening the chest he will need a checkpoint from which to start his invasion. This place would have needed preparation, rituals, and to already be a magical focal point. I can think of one such place."

"Coolsville" Sam whispered.

"He'll send an army." Rachael said. "Even if we rescue the boy…"

Sam held up his hand. "I get it okay. Fine, I'll stay out of the rescue mission." He walked right up to Van Ghoul and looked him in the eye. It was plain to see that whatever dynamic usually existed between the two, with Van Ghoul as commander and Sam as dutiful soldier was gone. Right now, it was Sam who was in charge, the worried father and the man who would answer to him. "Get my son home."

Van Ghoul nodded.

Rachael stepped into the center of the group. "We can't afford to wait too long. I say everyone get some rest, because we'll leave before dawn. If Fredrick and Daphne would like to accompany me back to base, I've got some preparations for them."


	34. Assembly

"**The Temple of Doom" from **_**Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom**_**.**

**Part 33: Assembly**

Krudsky and Ravencroft strode into Dracula's chamber with their heads held high. Ravencroft was holding a small satin sack while Krudsky gripped a large red chest. Dracula smiled at the sight of it. And this time the smile was not fake, it was not to fool or unnerve as so many of his smiles were. This smile was an honest expression of joy from the creature that lived within the body of Vlad Tepes III. It sensed its brothers and sisters close at hand. Soon they would be together again. Then he noticed something was wrong.

"Where is Knudsen?"

"One of the Rogers boy's friends killed him" Ravencroft said, then added "with Fletcher's assistance."

"No matter. Krudsky, summon the Egyptian and then meet us in the battery room."

"It will be done my lord" Krudsky said with a bow. He placed the chest on the ground and left.

At Dracula's command, two demons, coated in purple, sinewy skin entered and lifted the chest. They and Ravencroft followed Dracula out of the throne room. Towards the top of the castle they stopped at a heavy metal door. Griffin, who had joined them along the way opened it and waved his master inside.

Dracula passed to the center of the room where the young witch was restrained, her magical energies being drained to power the portals for the attack. Normally Dracula would be resting then, but these things demanded a certain formality. Dawn was the time the ancient texts specified for opening the chest, the time when energies were already naturally shifting

Ravencroft poured the six metal key fragments onto the floor in front of McKnight. Dracula stepped forward and added the ring and wolf pendant he had taken off of the boy's necklace.

Ravencroft kneeled in front of McKnight and took her left hand. In a moment Krudsky returned with the paper skinned Imhotep and they joined hands as well, forming a circle around the key fragments.

"The ceremony" Dracula whispered to Griffin, who looked on in awe, "requires a killer and a victim to be present. Miss McKnight's ancestor tore Sarah Ravencroft from her body and imprisoned her, thus the power of revenge is poured in. It requires ambition, like that of our friend Krudsky who killed dozens of fairies to imbue himself with mystic powers. And of course it requires experience. Imhotep was once one of the greatest sorcerers of ancient Egypt, a master of the art of resurrection."

Griffin nodded, his glasses moving up and down. Almost imperceptibly they rose a bit higher, the product of him widening his invisible eyes. Imhotep began to chant, slowly being joined by the others, even McKnight, who chanted despite herself. The words poured from their mouths and, just a bit at first, the key fragments began to tremble.

They slid across the floor, clicking into place with each other. Bolts of mystic energy arced from the walls and ceiling. Everything McKnight had generated and Dracula had stored was being poured into the ceremony.

The pieces looked firmly like a key now, and the new mass began to glow along the cracks between pieces. The chanting grew louder, the energy discharges wider, and Griffin's glasses higher.

Imhotep was the first to slow the chanting, and the others followed. In a matter of seconds it had stopped. The key had ceased to glow, and now it was a full key, no cracks, no pieces. Dracula smiled again as Imhotep picked up the key and slipped it into the bag. Griffin took it and bowed to Dracula before leaving. It was happening, it was all falling into place.


	35. Final Preparations

"**Marion's Theme" from **_**Raiders of the Lost Ark**_**.**

**Part 34: Final Preparations**

Back at the monastery, Rachael showed Fred and Daphne to the armory. There they selected the weapons they would use in the battle the next morning. Daphne pulled a longbow and a set of silver tipped arrows. She took a few practice shots, nailing the bull's eye on each one. In addition she would also take her Kukri and Bali Song.

Fred selected two items that were probably loaded with heroic symbolism, a Greek style sword and shield. Daphne knew that Fred was more of a hand to hand fighter, but she had taught him swordsmanship as best she could. The shield made her feel better.

Rachael fitted them for body armor that she promised would be ready by morning and they were free to leave. They went back to Coolsville, having dinner with their families and visiting their friends. They did not tell them what they would be doing tomorrow. They did not want them to worry.

They could have stayed in Coolsville for the night, but it would have been too hard to leave in the morning if they did. They had been provided with rooms at the monastery and now sat in one, just talking, laughing, and reminiscing. It had been a good run, and if it ended tomorrow then at least it would end with them doing what was right.

"It could end couldn't it?" Fred said while he and Daphne were sitting on the edge of the bed. "We could die tomorrow."

Daphne laughed and arched an eyebrow. "This just now dawns on you?"

Fred ran his hand through his hair. "I know, it's just, it's weird to think about."

"Anything you think you might not get the chance to do, something you wanted to do." Daphne leaned forward.

"I'm eighteen Daph, there's a lot I want to do." He paused. "One thing though, marry me."

Daphne smirked, but did not move away, instead she scooted closer. "What?"

"Not tonight I guess, but if we do make it out, let's get married. It doesn't have to be right away, but… you are the only thing I really want in this world."

Daphne smiled, showing off perfect white teeth. Her green eyes and the bright orange of her hair all made Fred want to pass out when she looked at him like that. He steadied himself.

"At a certain point in history, all you had to do was declare that you were married and you would be married. So, yes, let's be married."

"All right" Fred laughed, pulling a water bottle off the bedside table and lifted it in a toast. To a long married life, or if not, I'll see you on the other side." He took a drink.

"You're not big on _till death do us part _are you?" Daphne said as she took a drink from the bottle.

"No, I'm gonna annoy you well into eternity." Fred smiled.

"I look forward to it." Daphne said. "Mister Jones."

"Alright" Fred leaned in closer. "Misses Jones?" He asked tentatively.

Daphne nodded and then kissed him. Both leaned forward, each lost in the feel of the other's lips. Outside, across the base, some test rockets were fired into the air in preparation for the coming battle. They painted the sky orange, not that Fred or Daphne noticed in the slightest.


	36. Atonement

"**The Arctic" from **_**The Incredible Hulk**_**.**

**Part 35: Atonement**

Jekyll slumped against is desk, a bottle of scotch in front of him. A better man would have had a glass for it. Jekyll did not care about this as he pressed the bottle to his lips and downed another measure, nobody could accuse him of being a better man.

His head throbbed, and the alcohol was partially for that. Edward had hit the floor quite hard earlier, and it was a wound that stayed even after the transformation. All in all, the whole situation seemed frightfully familiar. Jekyll remembered all too well sitting at his desk a century ago, knowing he could not stop Edward, and resolving to end himself if it would rid the world of the monster he had created. It had not.

The same plan would not work again. He could try refusing to help Dracula any further, not that it would do much good come dawn. Once the chest was open complete and Dracula had absorbed the rest of the demons in the in it he would have no further need of his minions.

Jekyll leaned back into the chair again, about ready to give up. He had never done anything really worthwhile in his life. Every good deed had been damage control for his own mistakes. The very accident that created Edward had been a product of his own hubris. Perhaps this was his lot, to just lay back and die.

He thought of the boy, who had thrown himself so willingly between the Knight and the village boy for no reason other than it was his nature. Yet he had also soothed the townspeople after his victory, confusing as his words may have been. The girl too, displayed both cunning, far more than Jekyll had seen in a great while, yet he also clearly remembered the way she had attacked Edward. There was an animal ferocity there.

These people knew themselves in a way Jekyll felt sure he could not. They were able to take both the man and the beast within, while Jekyll had just cleaved one from the other, creating a thoughtless brute and an ineffectual brain.

Outside, he could hear villagers being shuffled into their homes. Dracula did not want anyone hiding come the dawn. He would need to feast.

Jekyll stood up and crossed the room to a locked cabinet. It was where he kept Edward's things. He took his chair and smashed the door open, pulling out Edward's cane, a fine cane for a horrid man. Swinging the cane and humming to himself slightly, Jekyll opened the door, coming face to face with one of Dracula's enforcers.

"Everyone inside, that means you too Doctor."

Jekyll smiled and then smacked the man across the head with the cane. Another one came at him and he repeated the gesture. Once the man was down, Jekyll bent down and yanked a set of keys off of his belt.

To his left, the mother and son he had just saved stared at him wide eyed. Jekyll leaned down and ruffled the boy's hair.

"Tell anyone who's interested that we're having a little revolution. I'll be off at the dungeons freeing our lupine protector if you need me." With that, Jekyll walked away toward the castle, a slight spring in his step. "Oh you should see me dance the polka…"


	37. Into the Fray

"**I'm Not a Hero" from **_**The Dark Knight**_**.**

**Part 36: Into the Fray**

Fletcher arrived well before sunrise to personally escort Fred and Daphne from their room. They were given their armor, leather chest pieces and metal gauntlets, which they put on over their clothes from when they had left Coolsville the first time. They felt slightly silly, standing in armor with their green and orange scarves and their purple coats and fuzzy white sweaters, but it also felt good, familiar, like they still had a connection to where they had come from.

Van Ghoul had said that they would not be taking the plane. Rather, this operation demanded a subtler entrance. A portal would be opened with Kate as an anchor, as close to Shaggy as possible. The Fletchers would guard the portal while Fred, Daphne, and Van Ghoul retrieved Shaggy, Scooby, and Velma.

Kate was positioned in the center of a chamber in the monastery. It was an old chamber, with carvings along stone walls that had been cut from the mountain itself. Sam stayed as close to her as he could while Van Ghoul, Fletcher, and a few more of the Brotherhood witches and warlocks worked their ritual. Kate, for her part, never looked scared or regretful. She kneeled in the center of the circle the witches were now forming, head held high. Cliché as it might have been, one could not shake the image of a proud wolf, standing atop a mountain peak.

"I won't lie to you Katherine" Van Ghoul said. "This is going to hurt. Once the portal opens, we will have maybe ten minutes to retrieve the children. Once it closes, you will be completely sapped of your strength."

Kate looked Van Ghoul in the eyes. "Do it."

Van Ghoul nodded and the assembled witches began chanting. Kate lurched forward. Sam moved to steady her but Rachael held him back. Lines began to glow along the floor, forming concentric circles until the glow hid the floor itself. Or perhaps the floor had gone. One could now see deep into the glowing circle, like it was a hole in the surface of the cave.

Kate's eyes rolled into the back of her head. Her chin kicked back, followed by the rest of her body. Her mouth hung open, wisps of silvery smoke pouring from it. The smoke drifted into the portal followed by a lone name.

"Norville."

The image in the portal sharpened and, at Van Ghoul's urging, everyone jumped.


	38. Jailbreak

"**Why Do We Fall?" from **_**The Dark Knight Rises**_**.**

**Part 37: Jailbreak**

Shaggy slumped against the damp stone wall of Dracula's dungeon. It was humid down in the dungeon, probably the only warmth in the entire realm. Shaggy had cast aside most of the suit, only keeping the reddish brown corduroy trousers and the dark green undershirt. The rest of the clothes sat beneath him, keeping the water in the ground from matting up his fur.

Velma was on his left, letting Shaggy lean his head on her shoulder. Her Victorian dress had been ruined within three minutes of entering the dungeon. Of course Dracula did not care, but Adam had been tasked with bringing them food (stale bread… hopefully bread) and had smuggled her some clothes from a previous kidnapping victim. It was an uncomfortable thought, but the clothes were dry, if a little dated. The burgundy skirt kept Velma from getting too warm and the orange turtleneck kept her from getting too wet.

Scooby paced around, keeping the rats at bay. He still had his blue collar and gold dog tag. Every so often he glanced at it, a proud declaration of who he was. Every time one of the demonic guards passed they would keep their distance from him. Shaggy could not tell if it was just something about dogs, or if they really feared Scooby himself.

"All my fault" Shaggy moaned.

Velma gave him a gentle slap. "It is in no way your fault. You were born with a gift, and Dracula is afraid of that. He is afraid of you and that gives you strength."

"Like really, because right now I'm just locked in a dungeon covered in plants that I can't touch without getting hurt."

Dracula had sent a few of his human followers to tie wolf's bane around the bars. It kept the demons from getting too close, but it also kept Shaggy, the only one capable of breaking them, from even touching them.

"Shaggy" Velma said, stroking his hair, "we've been through a lot. We will get through this."

Shaggy sighed, making more of a growling sound than he meant to. "Every time we got chased by monsters I would always try telling myself they weren't real. I can't do that anymore."

"They were always real Shaggy." Scooby said, turning away from the guard and facing his friend. "Maybe you never saw it, because when they had their masks taken off they were just like you, but I could see it. Humans are big and strong and smart, and when they go bad, in my eyes, or any dog, there is not a barkin thing separating them from Dracula. But I always went up against them, because you were with me, because Velma was with us, and Fred and Daphne would be there to bail us out when things got really rough. Yeah, the bad guys are a little stronger, but it's no difference to me, because my best friend is twice as strong."

"Dracula could snap me like a twig."

Velma shook her head. She lifted Shaggy's chin and looked him in the eyes. "He doesn't mean that. You never give up, you scream and you run, but you never stop fighting, not really. That's real strength."

"Yeah" Scooby barked. "Plus, you know, in the literal sense, he started smoking when he touched you. You got one up on him."

"We still can't get out" Shaggy said.

There was a thud from outside the bars. One of the demon guards was pushed against the wolf's bane and erupted into flames, burning the plants away with him. Jekyll walked up to the door, tossing the keys and catching them again. He was humming as he unlocked the door. Shaggy, Scooby, and Velma all stared at him.

He looked up and smiled. "Well come on, we haven't got all night."


	39. Lockdown

**Part 38: Lockdown**

Eric reclined in the old mahogany chair of the monastery's library. Fred and Daphne had asked them to do some research, apparently trusting their usual support team over the Knights. Dell sat across from him, face still buried in one of the books on the real Loch Ness monster. Marcie had left about two hours ago. Apparently her girlfriend had been hauled in by these Knights of Van Helsing and she had to go comfort her. Eric himself just wanted to rest. He realized now that he had not slept more than a few hours in the last few days.

He was not a hard line skeptic like Velma and Daphne, the existence of magic and monsters did not bother him beyond the fact that it presented lots of new dangers in the world. However, he was still scared. There was, after all, a reason he was not a hands on investigation man. He was strictly the research and report guy. But now, now he heard whispers of a coming invasion. Worse yet he was in a position where things like _whispers of a coming invasion _was a believable sentence.

He crumpled up a paper and tossed it at Dell. "Hey man, you know we're supposed to be researching this key thing. Nessie work on your own time."

Dell looked up from his book. "This is Key research. According to this, Nessie secretes a mucus that creates a conductor for magical energy."

Eric stared at Dell for a moment. Then pressed his hands against his eyes, rubbing his glasses up onto his forehead. "God he's serious!" Eric screamed at the top of his lungs.

Shannon and the rest of the Mysteries Inc. support team walked in just then. She put her arms around him and rubbed his head affectionately. Eric squinted up at her. She had tears in her eyes and he suddenly remembered that Fred and Daphne had gone a few hours ago.

The rest of the group took seats around the library. Even Marcy was there, though Abby was nowhere to be seen and Marcy's eyes were red and wet. Red leaned against the back wall, arms crossed. Minga sat next to Dell. Jimmy was idly sketching on a napkin he had been carrying around since graduation.

Red was the first to speak up. "You okay?"

Eric lowed his glasses back over his eyes. "We just got drafted into a magical war. This is insane. I just…" Eric had nothing left. He wanted to say something. He wanted to be the Fred of this group, but he knew, not that deep down even, that he was not.

"War is coming" Shannon said, her voice resolute even though she was plainly choking back tears. "It's almost a sure thing. I heard Shaggy's dad and the Warner man talking about it. They expect an attack by dawn. They say they'll be bringing civilians here and locking it down. We will be safe. We can be safe, or…" She looked across the room. "We can do something incredibly stupid. Red and I gathered up all of the old folk weapons against magic that we could find, iron, crosses, holy water. If we decided to avoid the lockdown. We could help put it around the town. We could help defend our home."

"We'd be trapped in a warzone" Jimmy said, more to himself than anyone else.

"You don't have to…" Shannon began.

"No I'm in" Jimmy nodded.

"You're in?" Red asked in disbelief.

Jimmy smirked. "Twenty years from now, when people are talking about this fight, I want them to be able to say that James Wyatt Proudwolf fought for his town."

Red stood up and walked over to Jimmy. He put a hand on his shoulder. "Stick with me, and I'll make sure you tell'em yourself."

Eric joined the group, taking Shannon's hand in his. Dell and Minga followed, and then Marcy.

"We've gone over enough of these books that we could probably whip up a little defensive spell. It'd help if we one of these witch-breed people that the books keep talking about though."

There was a shuffling at the door. Abby Wilcox stood, framed in the light of the hallway. Marcy took a tentative step toward her. Out in the hallway, more people appeared, Arlene, and Madelyn Dinkley, and some other kid that none of them had ever seen before.

Abby inhaled. "I think we can help with that."


	40. Big Damn Heroes

"**Rick and Evy in Battle" from **_**The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor.**_

**Part 39: Big Damn Heroes**

Shaggy ran down the halls of Castle Dracula, Velma's hand clasped tightly in his. Right beside them Scooby bounded like a greyhound, the pads of his feet clapping against the damp stone floor. Jekyll kept in front of them, watching for any guards along the way. The moment one appeared, crossbow in hand Jekyll swatted him with his cane. The crossbow went flying as the man fell and Jekyll caught it and tossed it to Velma.

"That'll be useful." He smiled.

Velma, Shaggy, and Scooby all just stared. Ever since breaking them out he had acted with a manic happiness, like he had just won the lottery. They followed the manic man up the stairs and out of the dungeons. There was a general scrambling of activity. Guards and demons were rushing from one room to another, shouting orders and asking for situation updates. None of them even took notice of the two humans, the werewolf, and the dog who walked out of the lower levels right into the chaos.

Shaggy looked around at the throng. "Like, uh, where are we going?"

"Out into the village" Jekyll shouted over the noise. "There should be a lovely war going on right about now, more than enough of a chance for you to make a run into the forest."

"I thought we couldn't leave" Velma shouted back. "Magic!"

"We'll just have to cross that bridge when we get there."

Jekyll led them out the front gates of the castle and they were greeted with a sight more amazing than the one they had witnessed when Jekyll broke them out. It seemed that every able bodied villager, and few not so able bodied ones, had gathered in the town square. Alongside them stood several of the grey creatures from the tavern, a few skeletons, the Frankensteins, and Lucy. They all held whatever vaguely weapon-like implements they had had available, pots, pans, kitchen knives, and a few wooden stakes.

A hoard of the ghastly purple demons that made up the majority of Dracula's army stood facing them, with the Black Knight at the forefront. He strode up to the one of the lead villagers and raised his sword. From the top of the hill, Shaggy and Scooby could both hear the wraith's deep voice.

"This rebellion ends here!"

He moved to bring down the sword, but found he could not. An arrow bolt had pierced the gap in his armor, preventing the arms from going down. Shaggy saw movement from one from the roofs, a lithe female figure notched another arrow and let it fly right through the Knight's visor. Then from out of the crowd charged four more new figures, one of which Shaggy most definitely recognized.

Fred held up a shield and rammed himself into the spectral armor, knocking it to the ground. Daphne jumped from the low roof to stand next to him. She slung the bow onto her back and drew her kukri. Behind them stood a man and woman that Shaggy now recognized as the Fletchers, as well as a man that he had never seen before.

John Fletcher and this man both held their hands toward the demon hoard and blasted them with fire, punching a hole through their ranks. The villagers cheered and Adam and Lucy led the charge into the remaining forces.

Fred and Daphne had begun charging up toward the castle. Shaggy, Scooby, and Velma were already running toward their friends. They met halfway down the hill. Fred made a startled face and pointed his sword at Shaggy.

"Hey, like cool it man" Shaggy panted. "It's me."

Fred's mouth fell open. "Shaggy? No way, what'd they do to you?"

"Rong story" Scooby barked.

"Well, aren't you two just big damn heroes?" Velma laughed as she embraced Daphne, holding the crossbow awkwardly behind her back.

"Yeah" Fred rolled his eyes. "Quote Joss Whedon, that'll ensure we all make it out of this."

"Any plans on that by the way?" Shaggy asked. "Because we were just making this up as we went along."

Daphne looked back nervously at the chaos. "We have a portal open, but not for long. What's with the _Les Mis_ scene?"

Shaggy shrugged. "Oh, you know, oppressive vampire regime, disgruntled villagers, that sort of thing."

"If they have a portal I suggest you make your way there." Everyone jumped as Jekyll suddenly reminded them of his presence.

"Who's this guy?" Fred asked.

"Oh" Velma answered. "This is Henry Jekyll, Doctor Henry Jekyll."

Fred and Daphne both gave short, spasm-y nods. "Okay."

"Like, downhill then?"

"I would dare to think not" A voice rasped. They did not even have to turn to see that it was Griffin. He stood a yard down the hill, flanked by demons, blocking their way.

The gang backed away, Fred and Daphne putting themselves in front of the others, Scooby putting himself in front of Shaggy, and Shaggy and Velma fighting to put themselves in front of the other. Griffin stepped forward, cattle prod in hand. This time there were no glasses, no bandages, just the suit, and a disheveled one at that.

Jekyll stepped forward in front of them. "Go, find another way around" he said stoically, looking Griffin right in what would have been his eyes.

"You can't fight him" Velma yelled. "He'll release you know who."

Jekyll rolled up his sleeves and loosened his collar. The cane was a blur swinging in is hand. "Go" he commanded again.

The gang, Velma in particular gave him worried looks, but they listened and ran sideways around the demons.

"They'll never make it out" Griffin sneered. "Isn't that right?" He pressed the button on the small remote. "Edward."

Jekyll doubled over in pain as the potion coursed into his veins. Griffin stepped forward and put a hand on his shoulder. There was a bounce in his step and it was obvious he was smiling. His victim looked up at him.

"Edward's not here. This is Henry."

Griffin took a shaky step back as Jekyll swung the cane at him, humming like a madman.


	41. Lost Connection

**Part 40: Lost Connection**

Natasha Dinkley sat by Kate as her breath grew ragged. Ten minutes ago the team had jumped to rescue their children. Sam kneeled by his wife, holding her hand as she struggled to keep the portal open. The other witches from the order were also straining to keep up the magic.

"Come on Katie, just a few more minutes."

Warner walked in, standing at attention in the doorway. "Hostiles spotted off the coast sir. He's sending them through some kind of underwater portal, probably so we can't invade him through it. Crystal Cove Sheriff's Department says that they'll make landfall just outside Coolsville in twenty minutes."

Kate looked over at Sam, tears streaming down her face. "Go" she croaked. "Do your job, I can hold until you get back."

Sam looked from Warner to his wife and back again. He kissed her and then stood. "I love you."

Kate smiled. "Go"

Sam followed Warner out, leaving Natasha to watch over the sick woman. Despite her protests that she was not a medical doctor, she was still a professor and that apparently made people feel safe. She took over holding Kate's hand as the poor woman tried to keep this impossible bridge open.

"Uh oh" The blond warlock said.

"What _uh oh_?" Natasha snapped.

"We're losing the connection."

"No" Natasha said, keeping her voice measured. "No that can't be happening."

Kate gritted her teeth and screamed. There was a sharp gust of air that flowed into the center of the portal and then back out again, blasting everyone back. Natasha recovered her bearings quickly enough to catch Kate as she fell. She checked her breathing and her pulse, both weak but present.

"It's gone" The female witch said in shock. "It's gone."

Natasha continued to cradle Kate in her arms. "Then bring it back dammit!"

The man shook his head. "We can't, she's too weak now."


	42. Stand Together

"**What Shall We Die For?" from **_**Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End**_**.**

**Part 41: Stand Together**

Sam stepped out onto the steps of City Hall. Behind him the clock tower chimed, marking it as around two o'clock in the morning. Most of the three towns of Barbera County were assembled to watch. Those not present were most likely listening on the radio, as whatever was left of the county's broadcasters were also present. A microphone had been set up and Sam, decked out not in his battle robes, but in his police dress blues, walked up to it.

He coughed, the sound echoing into the microphone. "You know me, most of you. I'm Sam Rogers. I'm a police officer, a member of the PTA," he gave a nervous chuckle. "You now know what else I am, and that I am more than what I ever said I was. In the time after this you are going to debate whether it was the presence of myself and my comrades that led to this attack, and that is your right. What I ask you now is to hold off on that. Because what we face is an enemy that cannot be appeased, cannot be surrendered to peacefully, and cannot be bribed away. Ladies and gentlemen the monsters are real, and they are on our doorstep. My brothers and will fight them, alone if need be. You have sacrificed enough and we will let you choose to seek shelter in our headquarters. There you will be safe, and eventually you may be able to escape. But I ask you now not to let us fight alone, and I speak to you not as a member of some secret society but as a citizen of this great city, this great community, and I ask you to fight with me, for your homes, for your families. Please, don't turn your back on this place just because some of us kept what was in the shadows a secret."

The crowd stirred, though Sam could not tell whether that was a good thing or not. Finally some of them stepped forward, all police officers at first, Messick, Kasem, Welker, Jaffe, North, Christopherson, then Skip Jones, Sheriff Stone from Crystal Cove, then the Mayor of Crystal Cove. More and more people stepped forward until it had ceased to be a small group of volunteers and was instead the same crowd moved up a few feet.

"Orders sir?" Kasem asked.

Sam smiled and steadied himself on the podium. It was actually working. "We'll need good shots up on top of the Blake house, it's the best vantage point in town for defending the portal into our base."

Fredrick and George Blake raised their hands. "You're looking at two rich boys with lots of hunting rifles and lots of spare china, as far as civilians go you'll find none better."

Sam nodded. "I want all officers to form a line across the edge of the residential district, any others who want to fight can fill out those ranks. Everyone else, see Warner for further orders. Good luck, and thanks."


	43. Alpha

**Part 42: Alpha**

Daphne slashed her kukri through one of the purple demons, turning it into a pile of dust in the Transylvanian street. Standing back to back with her, Fred slammed his shield into an oncoming attacker. As the demon was knocked back Shaggy swiped his claws at it, adding to the dust pile. Somewhere in the crowd, Fletcher had appeared and told them that the portal was closed. There had been a loose plan to regroup in the castle and try to establish a new connection. Thankfully there were far fewer demons guarding the way in than the way out.

Up in the topmost tower lighting flashed and demons swarmed. With each burst of electrical energy a few demons disappeared. It would be nice to think that they had been vaporized, but Daphne and Fred both knew better by this point. They were being teleported into Coolsville. It was guaranteed.

"Hey guys" Velma said as they ran. "Thanks for coming to save us."

"You kidding" Fred smiled. He tossed his shield across the battlefield and watched it collide with a demon preparing to attack a young boy. Daphne fired off an arrow and finished the job. "You guys are family, we'd go to hell and back for you."

"Like, you kinda did, didn't you" Shaggy smiled.

In front of the group, Scooby stopped. The rest of the gang skidded to a halt behind him. There was a row of about five large grey wolves, all snarling at the gang. The one in the lead had a nasty scar on his face. He walked up to Scooby and growled something. Scooby growled back.

"These your humans puppy?"

"Romulus or Dracula?" Scooby replied.

"No it's me old pal, and we got a score to settle."

Scooby and Romulus had begun to circle each other. The wolf kept his teeth visible at all times. Scooby tried to do the same, but he was afraid that the result was just not as frightening. Romulus lunged at Scooby but was immediately batted out of the air by a muscular, furry arm. Shaggy crouched down beside Scooby, sitting on his haunches and snarling at the assembled wolves.

Scooby wagged his tail. "That's my human." He nodded at Shaggy. "Now let me explain this to you boys" he pointed a paw towards them. "Pack." He pointed a paw at himself. "Alpha. Got it?" By the last syllable he was growling his words.

Romulus laid on the ground breathing heavily. He blinked his good eye at Scooby and Shaggy. The other wolves all looked at each other and then bowed their heads at Scooby and Shaggy.

"Alpha" they all said.

Romulus hobbled over to stand in front of them. His teeth were still exposed. Then, slowly, he shut his lips around them and dipped his head. "Alpha" he repeated.

The wolves parted as the gang walked past and, after a few growls from Scooby, took off and began attacking demons in the town. Fred, Velma, and Daphne looked back as they ran, unsure of what they had just witnessed.

"What was that?" Fred finally asked as they began ascending the stairs of Castle Dracula.

Scooby looked up at him, giving a doggy smile. "Rature."


	44. Sorcerers' Duel

"**The Red Book" from **_**Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows**_**.**

**Part 43: Sorcerer's Duel**

Fletcher blasted the metal door off its hinges. Rachael stood behind him, nonchalantly stabbing an oncoming demon as it passed. They walked into the mirrored room that Dinkley had told them about when they met on the battlefield. Magical energy crackled in the air. Any second now it would begin to discharge like lighting, sending random, undirected blasts across the room, perhaps even the whole castle.

The girl was strapped to a chair in the center of the room. Her hair was frizzed up by the ambient energy. Her face was coated in soot and sweat. Krudsky loomed over her, using a chubby hand to dab the perspiration from his own face. Fletcher wasted no time.

Fire blazing in his eyes he cast his hand at the false sorcerer, the serial killer who had drained the life force of hundreds of fairy creatures to infuse himself with magic. A wave of concussive energy shot towards him and he was blasted out of the room, shattering one side of the mirrored wall and flying out of the castle to land somewhere in the forest.

Without lifting a finger Fletcher undid the restraints. Racheal helped the girl up, pulling her into a fireman's carry. Magical energy still crackled around the room, but the source had been cut. Dracula was not going to be able to send any more of his army off to Coolsville.

"Going somewhere?"

Fletcher drew a line of flames in the air as he whipped around. The body of the long dead Ben Ravencroft stood in the doorway, the pale ghost of his ancestor flickering around it. McKnight's head lulled around to face him as well. Suddenly she jumped from Rachael's arms, galvanized by some primal connection to her magical ancestor, the one who had imprisoned Sarah's life force and her mother, who had bound it to the dead author.

Fletcher looked back at her. "It can't hurt you Miss McKnight. It's just a shadow."

"Beg to differ" Sarah said. She raised her hands, curling her fingers up and drawing in the magic from the air. Blue lighting crackled around them before it was shot at the escaping group.

Fletcher made a motion to the chair McKnight had been strapped into. It flew in front of them and caught the deadly blast. It was reduced to ash between them.

"Rachael get her out of here."

Racheal nodded. As she moved to leave Fletcher held up a hand and reached into his pocket. He pulled out his golden pocket watch, the one Vincent Van Ghoul had given him when he had completed his training, the one that had belonged to Van Ghoul's best friend from his own days serving out in the field. It was John Fletcher's most prized possession, and Racheal knew what his giving it to her now meant. She kissed him before she went, half carrying McKnight along with her.

"Well that was touching" Ravencroft sneered.

"It was good of you to let them leave."

"I'll kill them both later anyway."

Fletcher nodded and pulled off his coat, letting it drop to the floor. "By the ancient rules of witch's combat I challenge you, Sarah Ravencroft to a duel of magiks."

"I accept" Sarah said, now without even a hint of Ben's voice.

Racheal was halfway across the castle when she heard the explosion. She knew what it meant instantly. She gripped the watch a little tighter.


	45. Holding the Line

**For this and the following two chapters "I Don't Think Now is the Best Time" from _Pirates of the Caribbean at World's End_.**

**Part 44: Holding the Line**

George Blake saw fire. The whole coastal part of the town had been set ablaze. From his perch on top of the Blake mansion he could see the little purple dots that constituted the invading army. Several blue dots fell as they pushed into the town, dots that indicated either blue robed members of Sam Roger's brotherhood, or else blue uniformed police men. Fredrick and George themselves had changed into blue jeans and shirts. It had become the unofficial color of the resistance force.

Through the scope of his rifle George Blake sighted a stray demon that had managed to plow into their part of town. He squeezed the trigger, sending the silver bullet whizzing down to the street. It struck the creature, turning it to dust. He grinned at Fredrick.

"This what you thought you'd be doing this morning?"

"Oh sure" Fredrick said as he picked off another demon. "Wake up, scare Shannon's boyfriend, kill demons, regular day."


	46. Meeting the Enemy

**Part 45: Meeting the Enemy**

Sam swung his knives through the advancing hoard. Beau was right beside him doing the same. Beau ducked a sword swipe from a particularly well-armed foe. Sam blocked the blade and twisted it from the creature's hands. Seizing the opportunity Beau stood up, driving the point of his gauntlet blade into the demon's chest.

"Thanks for that one" Beau smiled. "So that's twelve for me and eight for you."

"One" Sam decapitated an oncoming monster. "Not a competition." He jump kicked a demon onto a nearby knight's sword. "Two; that counted for both of us."

"Whatever" Beau said. "I'm still winning." He tossed an oncoming attacker at Sam, who skewered it. "You can have that one. By the way, we got any idea who old fang face sent to lead this freakshow? I know Jones took out Knudsen and he probably needs Krudsky and Ravencroft back at the castle. The Black Knight maybe?"

Sam paused as the demon hoards parted. "Not the Knight" he said with his mouth open.

Beau looked off in Sam's direction and his mouth fell open too. "Sweet merciful god. Is that…?"

"Project Beowulf" Sam nodded.

Coming up through the demon ranks were two men. Sam recognized them instantly, Thomas Beck and Pietro Paoli, the perpetrators of the failed ceremony at the theatre the Halloween two years back. Sam knew they were warlocks of limited skill, but all evidence now pointed to the contrary. Gliding behind them was a thirty foot tall, hundred foot long, black scaled dragon. Steam poured from its pointed snout. Leathery wings created gusts of wind every time they flexed and claws the size of elephant tusks dug grooves into the concrete where they touched it.

Sam and Beau had both heard the stories. A dragon's fire was, aside from silver, one of the few surefire ways of killing a werewolf. It was a fact documented as far back as the epic of _Beowulf_, where a great dragon had killed the legendary Hound of God. Back during WWI Dracula had used a dragon to wipe out all werewolves, this same dragon, if Sam had to guess.


	47. Finding a Pack

**Part 46: Finding a Pack**

Natasha stayed by Kate's side as they transferred her to a separate room in the complex. The two witches had been called to battle back in Coolsville. Kate, Natasha, and the other refugees were now being watched over by Velma's teacher Mister Eisenhardt, apparently a robot, as the mess of wires sticking out of his half blown up head indicated. Juts looking at it made Natasha remember how it had been blown off during the raid on the school, a thought that made her want to vomit for a number of different reasons.

Around the back of the room, Natasha's old assistant Patrick Wisely was chained to a bed. His flaming red hair and beard had grown considerably since he had last been seen attacking Kate and Velma at the hospital. She had gathered, from snippets of conversation, that he had been drugged and brainwashed by some malevolent group, and was now undergoing therapy here. He tried to sit up, pulling at the leather straps affixed to his arms and legs.

"Wolf girl!" He screamed.

Eisenhardt walked over to him and pushed him back into the bed. He held him there while Patrick thrashed around.

"Is he okay?" Natasha called over. Wisely had only been her assistant for a few days, and it seemed that had all been part of some elaborate plot, but she still felt sorry for him. Back in December he had seemed so sweet.

"No" Eisenhardt said in answer. "We managed to detox him from most of the drugs, but the enchantments placed on him, the damage to his mind may be irreversible."

Natasha gave the boy one last sympathetic glance before turning back to Kate. She pressed a cold cloth to her head and Kate mumbled a few words that Natasha chose to interpret as gratitude.

"Kin!" Patrick yelled.

Natasha glanced over at him again, but was suddenly shocked by Kate's voice. "Kin" she whispered.

"Far from the shores of ancient home" Patrick crooned.

"Through the mountains which we roam" Kate continued in the same singsong voice.

Natasha and Eisenhardt both looked from one to the other as the dialogue continued.

"Always will our kin be strong."

"Through the bite we bring the dawn."

"When only one does walk this earth."

"A new pack but one wolf can birth" Kate finished.

Kate's eyes snapped open. She jumped from Natasha's arms and leaped at Patrick. Before everyone's eyes, she transformed, her body growing shaggy brown fur, her hands and feet growing claws and her teeth turning to fangs. She sunk those fangs into Patrick's shoulder and he let out a scream equal parts joy and relief.

As Kate fell back to the floor, already human again, Patrick seized in his bed like a man possessed. Claws and fangs grew in his mouth briefly before reverting back to human shape. Then a dark cloud of mist erupted from his mouth and shot through the air. Natasha ducked as it headed for her, but it was intercepted by the blond warlock from earlier. He held out a small flask and caught the mist, corking it inside.

"How did she do that?" He asked in awe.

"What did she do?" Natasha asked.

"She purged the spells from him." He pocketed the flask. "I don't know any magic that can do that."

Eisenhardt lifted Kate from the floor and set her back down in Natasha's lap. She was out again, but breathing more steadily. Over on the bed Patrick had stopped writhing.

"I may not be as much of an expert as Doctor Fletcher" Eisenhardt said, "but it is my understanding that there is a hereditary element to becoming a Faoladh. Judging from their brief song, I would deduce that Mister Knight has that gene within him, a connection that Misses Rogers sensed. She was then able to bite him, passing on a part of her powers as a first step in repopulating the world with their kind. I would further theorize that the transformation has a kind of purging component to it, whereby any illnesses of the body and mind are healed in order to make way for the wolf spirit."

Natasha and the warlock just stared. The lecture had been delivered with, at once, analytical detachment, and a caution, as though he was implicitly asking them not to place too much stock in his opinions.

"Okay" Natasha nodded.

"You got that?" The warlock asked.

Natasha shook her head. "Nuh uh, but I'm just gonna roll with it."


	48. Farewell

**Part 47: Farewell**

The gang burst through another set of large wooden doors, the castle seemingly full of them. Two of the large purple demons jumped at them the second they were through. They were instantly dusted by Fred and Daphne, who had picked up demon slaying rather quickly. Perhaps it was an inborn talent. Shaggy and Scooby's advanced hearing and senses of smell kept them aware of anything dangerous in their area. It also made them aware of a very human body laying beneath an overturned table.

Shaggy and Fred tossed the large dining piece to the side of the room, Shaggy, for once, contributing a little more than Fred. Beneath it, in a heap against the wall, was Jekyll, his clothes tattered, his face bleeding and his leg twisted in what should have been an impossible contortion.

Velma kneeled next to him, followed quickly by Shaggy and Scooby. Fred and Daphne hung back, feeling slightly out of place. They silently resolved to keep watch for attackers while the others had their moment.

Shaggy and Velma both reached their hands out toward Jekyll, their fingers touching in the process. Jekyll smiled as they shared an awkward glance and then took both their hands in his. With his other hand he patted Scooby on the head.

"What happened, did Griffin do this?" Velma asked, choking back a sob.

"No" Jekyll tried to laugh but the effort seemed to hurt him. "As your American saying goes… you should see the other guy… well, if you _could _see the other guy."

"Then, like, what happened?"

Jekyll tried to sit up and immediately fell back down. "I happened. Edward is gone, and with him, the strength that he provided this body." Jekyll's voice grew fainter with every word. "I set out to purge the darkness from myself, but I was wrong in my intentions. You helped me embrace myself wholly, man and beast."

"B… b… but you're dying!" Shaggy screamed. "Why?"

"Edward was stronger than a man, because he was less than one, but now, whole, undivided, I am only human. The potion no longer has any effect on me. It was Dracula and Griffin's mistake, subject a man to his demons for over a century, he is going to get over them."

"But, if there's no more Hyde, then you're weak and you're dying and it's my fault." Tears now streamed down Shaggy's furry face.

Jekyll moved his hand to Shaggy's shoulder. He looked him right in the eyes. "Because of you, I am dying as Henry Jekyll, and with only that soul in my body. That has been my only wish for over one hundred years. Thank you Norville Rogers. Thank you."

Jekyll's hand fell from Shaggy's shoulder. His head slumped forward and his eyes went unfocussed. Velma checked his pulse, but there was no doubt in her mind that he was gone. Shaggy collapsed into her arms and sobbed. She sobbed as well, her tears dampening Shaggy's fur.

They had no idea how long it was before Van Ghoul came bursting in through one of the doors, or Rachael and Thorn after him. Fred mothed a silent _where's Fletcher_ and Rachael just shook her head. Daphne put her hand to her mouth and choked out a gasp. Fred wrapped his arms around her, remembering that Fletcher had been like her uncle growing up.

Shaggy stood up, Scooby at his heels. Velma pulled a table cloth from the debris on the floor and covered Jekyll's body with it. Without a word, Van Ghoul lit his hand again and touched it to the draped figure. The fire blazed, contained only to the remains. Smoke wafted upward out the window. It was a proper funeral, the kind he would have wanted, the kind that ensured he could never be used again.

"We're getting out of here" Van Ghoul announced. There were no remarks as to the impossibility of that statement, just nods of assent. It did not matter that they were outnumbered and outgunned. They would make it home, there was no room for debate.


	49. Darkest Hour

"**For God and Country" from **_**The Lone Ranger**_**.**

**Part 48: Darkest Hour**

The battle had not been raging long, but as the demon hoards pushed farther inward, every minute seemed like an hour. Near City Hall, where he used to work, Skip Jones, former USAF pilot, fired silver bullets from a police rifle. Like almost all of his comrades, he had on a blue shirt, in this case an old collared shirt from one of his suits. The sleeves had been rolled up past his elbows and most of the front was covered by a dark black armored vest.

In front of him was a barricade of police cars. They were empty, only parked there to provide cover for Skip and the rest of the group around city hall. Mayor Snipper had already taken a sword to the stomach. Sam's friends in the robes had gotten him out okay, but there was no telling whether or not he would live.

Next to Skip was Redmond Herring, a boy that he knew had once had an antagonistic relationship with his Freddy. It hardly seemed to matter now, the boy, and that was what he was, Skip realized, just a boy, provided cover as officers carried the wounded back to their camp at the Griffin House. Sam had said that if it seemed the town was going to be taken, that the house was to be destroyed. Skip hoped it did not come to that. However, as the sun was blotted out by the creature above him, it seemed more and more likely.

A blast of fire shot from the creature's mouth, caving in most of the roof of City Hall. Debris cascaded down and Skip, Red, and the rest of the remaining combatants scattered.

* * *

><p>Across town at Blake Manor, George and Fredrick watched the city burn. The dragon soared across the sky, its wings fanning the flames, making them grow larger and larger. Back at the Griffin House they knew their wives had volunteered to help guard the gateway to the Knights' base. So far the fire had not reached that far. That was all the twins thought about, even as the winged monstrosity came flapping towards them. Their wives were safe, Shannon was safe inside that magical monastery, and Daphne had the Fletchers with her.<p>

The dragon craned its snake-like neck down at them as it passed overhead. They had heard enough stories from their grandfather to figure what was about to happen. Both men dropped their rifles and ran as fire engulfed the roof of the Blake Mansion.

It was not an old house. George had commissioned it when they first moved to America, as a gift for Josephine. It was to be their dream house, their place away from the weight of Blake Hall and the unpleasantness of Jo's family in France. It came fully equipped with a riding course and stables, a gym with boxing ring, and many other toys for George and Josephine to spend their time with. What it did not have, George reflected as he tumbled off the roof, was a soft back lawn.

Kurt Dinkley watched as chaos exploded around him. He was not a fighter, not a man of action in any way. He was tall and skinny, with large thick glasses that he was blind without. When the volunteering had started he had no skills to contribute.

So they stuck him on transit duty. He was behind the wheel of a police van, on his way back from bringing another batch of wounded to the base. Natasha was still tending to Katherine Rogers as far as he knew. That meant she was safe. Kurt, however, was not.

The demons came hard and fast. They swarmed the van, overturning it easily and knocking Kurt into the passenger side window. One of them leaped onto the top of the overturned vehicle and tore the door off. It reached a leathery hand inside and wrapped its whole hand around Kurt's neck. He was yanked out and passed from demon to demon down the street.

* * *

><p>Josephine tossed her sister in law a bow and quiver as their guns ran out. Jo herself had only recently learned how to use a bow and arrow. Fight training was more of a Blake thing. The Maxwells had insisted on being proper aristocrats. Had her mother had her way Josephine would be some meek stay at home wife who groomed her daughters as the same. As she kicked a stray demon off the lawn, she reflected how good a decision it had been to ignore her mother.<p>

Through the throng of demons a man approached the house. He had a slight limp, but compensated for it by literally gliding above the ground. As Jo looked at him she realized that this man, the absolutely ordinary, forgettable man was her a local mailman, or at least had been two years ago. That was before he had teamed up with the theatre manager to conduct a campaign of terror across the city.

Moira notched an arrow and aimed it at the man. Jo could see her fingers glistening with sweat. It was one thing to dust demons, it was another to kill a man. That second of hesitation seemed to have been a mistake. The man cast his hands forward and Jo and Moira felt themselves fly backwards, crashing through the door and into the house.

* * *

><p>Officer Messick had been on the force for a very long time. In that time he and his partner had grown to trust Samuel Rogers absolutely. They were not hesitant to believe what he said and were all too willing to join his battle. Behind him, Officer Kasem smacked a demon in the face with the butt of his shotgun. Messick pushed his friend down as a spear soared over their heads.<p>

Down the road a bit Welker and Christopherson had been backed into a squad car, frantically trying to find ammunition. Jaffe and North had already disappeared behind police headquarters. Messick did not want to think about what had happened to them.

On his belt, Messick's radio crackled to life. He had forgotten he still had it, but now he felt sure he would feel its weight like a ball and chain.

"_This is Strong and Delisle, Baker's down. Somebody for the love of god help!"_

"Strong!" Messick yelled into his radio. "This is Messick! Where are you?"

"_Oh my God!" _Innes' voice came through on a different channel. _"Are you people seeing this? Is that a dragon?"_

"_This is Menville! We've lost City Hall! I repeat, we've lost City Hall!"_

"_Cohn to anyone! Bennett's been pulled up by some kind of monkey looking thing! I need backup!"_

"_Oh god" _Sam's voice came through, full of anguish. _"God no!"_

* * *

><p>The old man was faster than Sam would have believed. No doubt magic had something to do with that. In a departure from the warlocks Sam had met before, Paoli preferred to use weapons. He had a long knife in each hand. He spun, slicing through the air and anything unfortunate enough to be in its way. His frail form kept him fast and hart to hit.<p>

That was why Sam had resorted to something other than a fair fight. He bobbed and weaved, feigning attacks to keep Paoli occupied. Sam's daggers, detached from their housings, where dazzling as he spun them in a series of increasingly intricate movements. It was hard to avoid Paoli's strikes, but Sam kept up, kept Paoli focused on him.

He struck, actually getting lucky and nicking the old man on the lip. A small trickle of blood dropped to the ground. Hopefully that would make him angry. Paoli slashed his knives faster and harder. Sam had to put all of his energy into not getting julienned.

Then, finally, Paoli brought both knives down toward Sam's head. Same crossed his own blades above him, blocking the strike and barely managing to hold the blades away from his face. Beau, creeping up behind, took the opportunity to thrust his own knife forward into the old man's back. Paoli immediately let up on Sam and spun to face his new attacker. He spun the blade from Beau's hand and pushed his own deep into Beau's stomach. Then he walked away, the battle parting around him, leaving his knife impaled in Sam's best friend.

Sam jumped forward to catch Beau's falling body. His arm pressed against the call button on his radio, activating it, not that he noticed. He fell to his knees, Beau in his arms.

"Oh god" Sam panted. "God no!"

"Good…" Beau coughed up blood. _Good_? Sam thought. What could be good about this? Beau inhaled sharply, "…bye."

He was still smiling that same cocky grin when he died. The grin Sam would always remember him for. He had wanted to be a writer someday. Sam would remember that. He had a girl back in Louisiana that he wanted to track down someday. Sam would remember that. He had been Sam's only family, his only friend, after abandoning his own. When Sam Rogers had had nothing else, he had Beau Neville. Someday Sam would remember that. Today, now, he just cried, and he remembered nothing.


	50. The Impaler

"**Transylvania 1887" from **_**Van Helsing**_**.**

**Part 49: The Impaler**

Dracula had his spindly white fingers wrapped around the windowsill as he surveyed the battle outside. For the first time he was truly seeing just how much of a problem this boy had become. The stone cracked under his grip. His lips inched away from his fangs as he grimaced. Slowly he turned away from the window and walked across his throne room to a large mounted set of armor. It had once shined but was now almost black with age. A blood red cape was draped over it and a spear was set in the metal gauntlet.

Dracula shed his suit and slipped the chainmail on, then the breastplate and gauntlets. He swung the cape around his shoulders, the heavy fabric creating a draft in the room. From the wall he pulled a mounted sword with a curved blade that ended in a hook. He strapped this to his belt and then grasped the spear.

He whipped around to face the window, the cape creating another gust as he did so. In that burst of wind the human creature disappeared and in his place was a screeching cloud of smoke and bats. It poured out the window and spread across the battle field.

Down below one of the villagers was about to impale one of Dracula's demonic army. Before his sword found its mark he was engulfed in this swirling black cloud. Then the body reformed and there stood Dracula, a peasant on the end of his spear once again. He licked the blood as it trickled down the weapon's shaft, smiling at finally being in battle once more.

He snapped the body off of the end of his spear and threw his head back, relishing in the thundering battle around him. Dracula drew his sword as a peasant charged at him. With a flourish he cut the man down. Around him a small part of his army had gathered to marvel at their leader.

Dracula licked the blood from his lips as he looked around at them. "What are you waiting for? FIGHT!"

He took off across the battlefield like a hurricane. His presence alone forced men into submission and whipped his armies up into a frenzy. He twisted necks and drained bodies, slashed and speared.

Then he turned his head back to the castle. The boy and his followers would be running like scared little animals right about now. It was time to hunt.


	51. A Little Bit Nuts

**Part 50: A Little Bit Nuts**

Shannon sprinkled the last of the herbs as Abby, Arlene, Madelyn Dinkley, and the young boy apparently called Fernando completed their incantation. She tried not to think of what she was doing as magic. That only made her head hurt.

While Jimmy and Red had gone out to fight, they had stayed behind to try to prepare this spell. They were now congregated in the hangar of the monastery in the wardrobe. The large propeller plane stood idle behind them.

As far as Shannon could see there was no way of telling if their plan had worked. That was meant to be a protective spell, but in the absence of a pulse of energy or a large glowing bubble she was forced to conclude it would not be much help.

Eric and Minga stood off to the side with Maggie Rogers. Marcy was cradling the swooning Abby. Apparently the spell had done something because the two women were looking fairly drained. Madelyn and Fernando did not seem to be affected. Never the less Maggie ran over to them to make sure they were alright.

"Well, that seems like a bust" Eric sighed. "What'd you say we grab some swords and join the guys out there" he said in a way that indicated both _I want to help _and _lock me up for that crazy idea_.

Minga come running in then, out of breath. She had a knife dangling from her belt, but so far did not seem to have gone outside to join the battle.

"Misses Rogers and Patrick are still freaking out, they say they're trying to bite people, to… make more werewolves to fight this thing I guess. From what I heard these Knights aren't sure if they want to let that happen or not."

"More power to them" Dell mused, then he noticed Maggie Rogers looking terrified. "I mean, I'm sure she won't bite you, she's your mom" he finished lamely.

She shook her head. "It's not that, I can feel Shaggy in danger."

"You can what?" Eric asked.

Madelyn pointed a finger lazily in Maggie's direction. "They have a psychic link."

Eric's jaw hung open, and then he bent over and screamed into his cupped hands. "Why won't life just make sense anymore?"

While Eric was screaming, Dell looked from Maggie to the plane and back again. "You know, they opened that portal with Misses Rogers' psychic link."

Eric and Minga looked at him in confusion. Maggie and Shannon, however, both seemed to catch on to what he was saying.

"Dell, you can't be serious" Shannon said, her voice tinged with horror.

"I'll do it" Maggie announced.

"Do what?"

"He wants to use Maggie to open another portal." Shannon said with her hands on her hips and her voice full of disappointment.

"Not exactly. Well, yes exactly. That plane opens portals right? I read about it in their library. They didn't use it because they wanted to be discrete, but screw discretion now, I mean, there's a war going on out there. We can use the plane to go in and rescue them."

"Dell" Shannon snapped. "The portal almost killed Shaggy's mother and the only reason it didn't was because she was a full werewolf. We don't know what it will do to Maggie." She pointed to where Maggie had been only to notice that she was sprinting as fast as she could out of the room.

Shannon took off after her, bursting out of the hangar and running across the gardens to the medical building. She had already lost sight of the young girl but was still able to predict her movements there. She shot through the doors and into the room where Kate Rogers was being kept only to realize that she was too late.

Maggie was sitting next to her mother, a wound on her shoulder already closing up and fangs receding into her gums. She looked up at Shannon and smiled, grunting through the pain that she still felt. "Okay, let's do it."


	52. Flourish Again

**For this and the next chapter "I Don't Think Now is the Best Time" from **_**Pirates of the Caribbean at World's End**_**.**

**Part 51: Flourish Again**

George Blake grimaced as he reset his dislocated shoulder. It was a skill he had acquired as a young man exploring the caves under Blake Hall. There was a snap and then a scream. He stood up, helping his brother get to his feet next. Before them the house was fully engulfed in flames. Everything he and Jo had built for their family was gone. Behind him the only structure still left standing was the stable. The two family horses could be heard whinnying at the flames.

George's eyes widened. He ran to the stables and threw open the gates, beholding the two mares, one pure black and the other pure white. Stacked up across from their pens was a stockpile of antique weaponry that he had never found a place for in the house. He grinned at Fredrick and Fredrick grinned back.

They pulled swords from the pile and mounted the horses. George took the black one, Athena, while Fredrick took Artemis. Both brothers snapped at the reins and charged out of the stable and around the inferno.

A group of demons was advancing on the house. George beat Fredrick to them and swung his sword down into the throng. He snagged three of them, turning them to dust. Fredrick burst through next, knocking them out of his way with a shield.

The demons were too stunned to chase them as they thundered down the hill and into the town. Both brothers threw their heads back and hollered, not out of battle frenzy or even happiness, but out of shear animal instinct. They were surviving and winning.


	53. Fortune Favors the Bold

**Part 52: Fortune Favors the Bold**

Kurt Dinkley shut his eyes as the demon pinned him against a tree and moved its teeth toward his face. Hot, almost suffocating air emanated from within the creature, accented by the smell of sulfur. He could feel it searing his skin as he waited for the end. Then three cracks went off like fireworks. Kurt felt dust raining down on his body and he dared to open his eyes.

Skip Jones was standing in front of him, a smoking revolver clutched between both hands and piles of dusted demon at his feet. He had a look in his eyes like a predator that had just made a kill, but that softened as soon as he looked up at Kurt. He holstered the revolver.

"Doctor Dinkley" he clapped Kurt on the shoulder. "Good to see you're not dead. Say, do you know the way to Cape Casem?"

Kurt nodded.

A few minutes later they were pulling in to the abandoned former NASA base. It would have been a longer drive, but it's amazing the time you make when you have no concern for speed limits or personal safety. Indeed, if this man had taught his son how to drive then Kurt was retroactively uncomfortable with all of the times that Fred Jones had driven Velma around.

Skip stopped at the entrance to the main hangar. He pressed a button by the side of the large hangar door and it began to rise, creaking and showering dust onto the ground.

"When they closed the base," Skip explained as he stepped in, Kurt following cautiously, "they took most of the new stuff with them, like that fancy gunship Freddy flew a couple of months back. But they left all of the old planes and from what I hear Rogers' pals in the hoods had'em fueled up and made battle ready when they found out we'd be fighting a war here."

Skip stopped right beneath a large gunship that looked to be a WWII era fighter plane. Skip inhaled sharply. "Smell of engine grease in the morning and all that," he said as he began climbing into the pilot's seat. He looked down at Kurt who was just staring slack jawed. It seemed the boy was truly his father's son. "Coming Doc?"

Kurt nodded.


	54. Vendetta

"**Barbosa is Hungry" from **_**Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl**_**.**

**Part 53: Vendetta**

Sam cradled Beau's body in his arms as he marched back to his home. None of the demons paid him any mind. As far as they were concerned he was broken. The broken people, Sam knew from experience, they saved for after the battle, when the bloodlust had died down and they just needed to recharge. In the heat of the fight they wanted prey that could fight back.

The Rogers house was remarkably untouched by the raging battle. It was neither burnt nor broken. The door was even still locked. Sam kicked it down, not wanting to shift Beau's body around to find his key. He walked into the bedroom and laid his best friend's body down on the crisp sheets. Gently Sam closed his eyes and laid his arms across his chest.

He left the bedroom and made his way down to the basement. Just below the basement window there was a loose floorboard. Sam stuck his dagger into the crack between the boards and leveraged it open. He hefted out the massive trunk that he had hidden there since the day they moved in. Taking his time, Sam removed the bulletproof vest that he had been wearing for the beginning of the battle. Then he pulled out the inky blue robe inside the chest.

It was one movement to put it on, like a t-shirt. Next came the blade gauntlets, which he locked tightly into place. Then he slipped on the Tesla Gloves, capable of delivering powerful electrical shocks to an opponent. They were not standard issue, but each member of the brotherhood could accessorize as he chose. Beau had favored a small Derringer pistol that sprung from beneath the sleeve, loaded with a single silver bullet.

Lastly, Sam maneuvered his ring over the glove, the golden VH sigil shining brightly. He began his trek up the stairs, face setting into a purposeful grimace. As he crossed the threshold out of the house he flicked the hood up. It was time to show the hordes of hell exactly who they were dealing with.


	55. Dracula's Guests

"**Dr. Van Helsing and Dracula" from **_**Dracula**_**.**

**Part 54: Dracula's Guests**

Fred and Shaggy slammed the oaken doors shut as the group of demons ran at them. Daphne launched her last arrow through the space between the doors, picking off one demon and allowing them to be latched shut. The boys collapsed against them, panting like dogs. Scooby came over to Shaggy and let him pat him for a moment.

"So no way out back there then?" Fred asked, pointing at the door.

"Even if we could get back through to the forest, the portal has long since closed. I felt it a few minutes after we arrived." Van Ghoul said as he took Thorn onto his shoulder, freeing Rachael to draw her swords should the need arise.

"So what do we do?" Shaggy said between deep breaths. "How do we get out?"

"I could, with Miss McKnight's help, attempt to open another portal, but it would be very risky, the damage I could do to your mother alone if we tried again so soon…" he trailed off, lost in his own thoughts.

"Like, my mom, what about my mom?"

Daphne walked over to Shaggy and put a hand on his shoulder. "Do you want the long version or the short version honey?"

There was a loud crashing sound from the other side of the door and the wood bent inward a few inches. Shaggy and Fred scuttled away from it.

"Short version" Shaggy said as everyone took up battle stances.

"Your family are psychically connected werewolves who protect people, and your mom got bit so now she's full werewolf and we used her connection with you to open this portal" Fred said as he drew his sword. "Did I miss anything?"

"Nope" Daphne said as she twirled her Kukri in anticipation. I think you covered it."

"Yes" a voice crooned from the open window. "That sounds about right."

Dracula materialized just inside the room. He took a few steps toward them, black battle armor clinking with every movement in a way that should have been silly but ended up quite terrifying. He had a spear in one hand which he threw into the door on the opposite side of the room. It impaled the wood with such force that a demon on the other side screeched in pain as it was run through.

"You know," Dracula began as he pointed a sword towards them, "you people really are some of the most annoying humans that I have ever had the displeasure of knowing. I mean, Van Helsing and Harker and all of their little friends, they were bad, and that American werewolf, he was very irritating, but you meddling kids. Do you have any idea how many times you have set back my plans?"

"What a personal compliment" Fred smirked, though it was obviously a fake smile to hide his terror.

Dracula pointed the sword at Fred. "You I'm going to kill. The wolf boy's woman I will kill also, just to hurt him. The dog will definitely die. I can't stand dogs. The redhead and the sorcerer's woman I think I will keep for myself, as replacements for the two wives that I have lost since we came up against each other."

"Over my dead body" Shaggy blurted out, not quite sure why.

"Eventually yes. But first I need you to open the chest." Dracula held out his palm and resting in the center was a golden key, fashioned from all of the pieces that they had collected. He sheathed the sword and snapped his fingers. The chest itself slid from across the room coming to a halt at Dracula's feet. It was then that the gang had the horrible realization that they were in Dracula's private chamber. "Open it now if you please."

Shaggy gritted his teeth. "No." But his feet were already moving forward. His clawed hands were reached for the key.

Dracula smiled. "You cannot resist it, it is in your nature. In the deepest part of your being you want to lock me away in that chest, but you can't. You don't have the backup. Once you have done this for me, I'm going to kill you too, but slowly, painfully. Then I am going to find your mother, and your sister, and wipe every last werewolf from the face of the Earth."

Shaggy grabbed the key and began making his way toward the chest. It began to shake. Noises sounded from it, just whispers at first and then howls of rage, all screaming at Shaggy for freedom.

Velma pushed away from the group and wrestled the key away from Shaggy. He lunged at her for it but she was faster on her feet than she looked. She held it up over her head like a bully keeping money away from a skinny freshman, except Shaggy had about a foot of height on her and he could easily grab it away.

"Don't make me do this Velma" Shaggy growled as he stepped closer to her. "I don't want to hurt you."

Velma planted here feet more firmly on the ground and looked Shaggy in the eye. "You won't, you can't. Every instinct you have says to protect people right, that's the kind of creature you are?"

"A pure Hound of God perhaps" Dracula said as he began gliding toward Velma. "But he is not pure, he is a mongrel, only enough pure Faoladh in him to open the chest, the rest of him, the essence of Griffin's formula, is all savage, killer, werewolf."

Velma ignored Dracula, deliberately keeping her eyes off of him even as he settled just over a foot away her. "Shaggy that's not _you _though, you are better than this, you, the man, not the wolf. Just forget about Faoladh, and formulas, and everything else, you are a good man, and you won't hurt me just to get this key."

Dracula put a hand on Shaggy's shoulder. Smoke poured from beneath it and everyone in the room winced as they heard the faint sizzling of Dracula's flesh burning against Shaggy's fur. "You can be free Sha-gee, just open the chest."

Shaggy's eyes went out of focus at the sound of Dracula's words. He began to turn towards him. Van Ghoul stepped forward.

"Let the boy go Dracula."

"Quiet Quincy or I'll send to your parents" Dracula said without even bothering to look at him. He kept his eyes on Shaggy. "Open the chest boy."

The next few moments were a blur. Scooby lunged, sinking his teeth into Dracula's outstretched arm. Fred and Van Ghoul pulled Shaggy down. Rachael charged at Dracula with her sword. Dracula whirled around, tossing Scooby off of him and swinging his sword at Rachael. She blocked the blow and then ran her sword through his chest. In one quick motion she pulled a golden pocket watch out of her robe and tossed it to Daphne. She gave a last quick glance at the group before charging toward the window, Dracula still on the end of her blade. They both tumbled down and out of sight.

Daphne made for the window but Fred held her back. "Aunt Rachael!" She screamed, her knuckles going white as she clutched the watch, Fletcher's watch.

Van Ghoul made a cursory glance at the window before casting his hands toward the wall opposite the door and blasting it away in a plume of fire. "Come on, we need to keep moving, before he comes back."

Daphne stormed up to him, and this time Fred made no attempt to stop her. "That woman was like family to me! Can we just have a minute?"

Van Ghoul kept his voice measured, but he was clearly close to breaking. "Will that bring her back? Yes, Rachael just died to save us, but rest assured she did not kill Dracula. So if you want her death to mean something then you follow me, but if you want to make her just another meaningless casualty of this bloody war then by all means stand here and mourn and I promise you that after Dracula comes back and turns you I will give you a quick death."

Daphne clutched both the watch and her knife a little tighter. Her face was unreadable. Fred looked at the confrontation, wondering just who's side to take. Daphne took a step towards Van Ghoul and leaned in close to him. Though focused on her face, out of the corner of his eye he saw her pocket the watch.

"When this is over, we will mourn her, and John."

Van Ghoul looked her in the eyes right back. "I promise you that."

Velma took a turn shouldering Thorn, Daphne and Van Ghoul took point, and the rest of the gang followed out the hole that Van Ghoul had blasted in the wall. It led up a large spiral staircase and they climbed, not sure where they were going, just sure they needed to get away.


	56. Aux Armes Citoyens!

**Part 55: ****Aux Armes Citoyens!**

Beck paced around the room, Josephine and Moira magically pinned to the wall at his feet. He had been searching a good ten minutes for the entrance to the Knights' base. Thus far Jo and Moira had been able to keep up their poker faces. Jo knew that she was supposed to burn the wardrobe if they got close, but she had no idea how to do that without tipping him off.

Across the room were the weapons they had been successfully defending the house with up until Beck had shown up. They were mostly empty anyway, only the bow and one arrow remained.

Beck got right into Jo's face, making her want to throw up. She resisted the urge, but reflected on how fitting it would be if she did vomit right into his smarmy face.

"I'm going to ask one more time Misses Blake, where is the doorway? The Knights' sorcerers have obviously masked it well. Even with my power I cannot sense it, but you can tell me where it is."

"Brûler en enfer salaud" Jo said, pouring every ounce of strength she had left into the words rather than any unconscious indication of where the portal was.

Beck grimaced as he stood up straight. He put his hands behind his back and continued pacing. "I've never liked you French. You always resist what is best for you. The last time I was in France it was the same, people taking to the sewers to fight a battle that they had already lost. Master Paoli and I killed many of your countrymen then, back when we first discovered our abilities." He smiled fondly. "Your country fell, what makes you think it will be any different now?"

"Because now" Came a grunting voice from the doorway. "She has help."

Warner charged in, a large broadsword in hand. Beck conjured a fireball in his palm and lobbed it at him, but Warner rolled out of the way. In the commotion Jo began crawling along the dusty floor. Flames and small throwing knives arced through the air above her but she deliberately ignored them as she made her way to the discarded bow.

Beck finally hit Warner with a fireball, pushing him against the wall. He held out his hand and the sword flew into it. "I'd ask you if you have any last words, but I really don't care" Beck shrugged. He jammed the sword through Warner's chest, his last breath in his throat. The sword went all the way through his body and stuck into the wall, pinning the man that had been Michael Jeffery Warner upright. "Now where were we?" Beck said, clasping his hands as he turned.

Jo held the bow ready, the last arrow notched and aimed at Beck's heart. "I was going to ask for last words" Jo said as she released the bowstring. "But I really don't care."

Beck fell to the floor, the shaft of the arrow sticking straight up. In a few hours Jo could process what she had just done, right now there was still work to do. She helped Moira up and walked over to the wardrobe.

"I think we need more arrows, oui?"

Moira nodded, trying to avoid looking at Warner's body. "I think you're right."


	57. Turning the Tide

"**The Battle of Yavin" from **_**Star Wars: A New Hope**_**.**

**Part 56: Turning the Tide**

Sam acted on years of honed battle instinct as he waded through the fight. He made every movement count. Every time he ducked a blow he would make sure to take a swipe at a demon's legs. For every demon he killed he scoped out his next target. He picked them with great precision. He knew that he could not take on the entire army by himself. So he had resolved to find the man who was leading them. Of course there was an element of revenge to it, but that did not mean it was not a sound plan. That was how he chose his targets. He was blazing trail straight to Paoli.

The surviving Knights and officers on the radio had said that Dracula's army had set up a command center in City Hall. Sam cut a path through the demon hoards in about twenty minutes, running largely on adrenaline at this point.

He climbed the steps and walked through the remains of the marble columns that had once held up a stone archway. Most of the building's front had been obliterated by the dragon fire. The clock tower still stood, but barely. The inside, though, was still pristine. A large statue of a winged angel with a spear was set into the middle of the room. The assembled demons averted their eyes from it as they milled about. This ensured that they noticed Sam the moment he walked inside.

Up on the mezzanine Paoli, who had been surveying his troops locked his eyes on Sam and smiled. Sam barely hesitated, only taking the time he needed to get the layout of the room. Once the ten seconds that took him was up he pounced.

There was a flurry of movement from the demons. Most rushed at him and were cut down with ease. Some tried to run and Sam let them. Paoli was his target, and once he was dead, without a commander, the demon army would be easy to beat.

Paoli leaped off the balcony, landing on his feet and hands like a jungle cat, robe splayed out around him. He stood up and began crossing the room to Sam, holding both hands out, palms up. Blue lightning arced along his fingertips. As he walked toward Sam he kept the same broad smile plastered to his face. Sam remembered that smile from the last time they had met. He did not even know the man was a sorcerer then, he just seemed like another crazed Dracula cultist. He could not be too powerful or else he would not have needed to resort to so much trickery back then.

Of course, Sam reflected as he jumped out of the way of a lightning bolt, letting it split open the roof, even a weak sorcerer was a threat.

* * *

><p>George Blake yanked on his horse's reigns as a massive shadow began to block out what little moonlight was still visible through the smoke of battle. Fredrick stopped next to him. Both craned their necks up, mouths agape, eyes stretched open to an almost unbelievable size. Wind whipped up around them as the dragon's wings beat at the air, fanning the flames that poured from its maw.<p>

"George" Fredrick said, "That's your job I think."

Even with the terror George had to laugh. "Yeah, good one."

"Together then?"

George Blake looked back at the burning remains of his house. If it was time, it was time. "Yeah, together, let's make our ancestors proud." George gripped the sword tighter as he jumped off the horse. There was no sense sending her to her death with him. He closed his eyes and breathed in deeply, figuring that it would be his last breath.

"George" Fredrick said, a new note of surprise in his voice.

George opened his eyes and looked over at his brother. Fredrick was looking up past the dragon and George followed his gaze. "No way."

* * *

><p>Skip Jones pushed the stick down slightly, sending the WWII era fighter careening toward the winged beast. It was not even registering their presence. All of its energy was focused on the people down below. Skip reminded himself that that was a good thing, at least for him and Kurt.<p>

"You ready back there Doc?" Skip yelled over the engine noise, making sure to keep his voice light so that Kurt would feel more secure in their plans.

"Uh" Kurt choked. "I guess, ready as I'll ever be."

Skip nodded and began turning the fighter, circling around the beast so that they were face to face with it. The dragon looked up briefly, as though just noticing a fly that had been in the room for some time. It inhaled, the force of its lungs actually moving the plane a bit. Smoke began to pour from its nostrils and Skip made a preemptive dodge. Fire shot out in a column twenty feet wide. Skip and Kurt were barely clear of the blast. Both men shut their eyes so as not to be blinded by the light.

Kurt slapped Skip on the shoulder. "You know, I think I finally get it, why our kids did what they did. It's terrifying, but staring the unknown in the face like this, it's gratifying too."

Skip nodded, then under his breath "Sure as hell is."

He looped around again, stressing the seventy year old craft to its limits. Now the plane's side was facing the dragon and Skip signaled for Kurt to fire. Kurt obeyed, aiming the turret and letting loose. Bullets, silver ones by the looks of them, bounced off the creature's skin.

"It's not working!" Kurt yelled.

Skip rolled his eyes at the obvious statement. Never the less, Kurt was right. If the bullets did no damage, and the swords and arrows being used down on the ground did not look like they were faring much better, then what could they do? Well, Skip had an idea, not a great one, but what are you gonna do?

"Kurt, there's a parachute back there right?"

"Yeah" Kurt yelled back. "Why, you want to smother it?"

"No" Skip shook his head. "You're gonna put it on, and then I'm gonna turn the plane upside down. I want you jump out, count to five, and pull the cord."

"What about you?"

"I'm gonna ram him."

"You'll die!"

"Maybe, but I might be able to get out in time. If I don't, do me a favor, and I know it's a terrible cliché, but tell my wife I love her, and if… when my Freddy gets back, tell him the same, and tell him I'm proud of him."

Kurt was silent for a moment, then he nodded. Then he realized that Skip was not looking at him and could not see that. "I will. It's been an honor Mister Mayor."

"I'm not your mayor anymore" Skip said as he began to gain altitude, trying to get high enough that Kurt would be able to use the chute.

"Yeah, well you always had my vote."

Skip smiled at that and then flipped the plane upside down. There was a rush of air as Kurt unlatched his cockpit and fell out. Skip struggled to reach back and shut it again, and as he did he got a glimpse of Kurt drifting down on the parachute.

Skip turned the plane again, righting himself and shooting right for the Dragon's gaping maw. There was enough fuel and enough silver bullets in the craft to do some real damage if it got burned. The dragon looked at him, reptilian eyes focusing on the oncoming craft, nostrils steaming.

"Alright you scaly, fang faced, fire breathing bastard, as a duly appointed government representative of this town, I'm kicking you out."

* * *

><p>Kurt Dinkley watched from the ground as the fighter plane rammed itself into the dragon's mouth, just as the flames were beginning to blast. The fuel in the fighter exploded, blasting the beast's head from the inside out. The dragon's now headless body tumbled to the ground, flames licking at the sides. Plane parts and green oozing dragon bits rained down on the battlefield. In that moment, it seemed like the entire battle had gone silent.<p>

Kurt scanned the horizon for any sign that Skip had made it out, but saw nothing. The Blake brothers rode over to him on horseback, dismounting when they reached him.

"What in the hell?" George said.

"Skip" Kurt sighed as he slumped against a nearby tree. "He rammed the dragon, sacrificed himself for us."

George looked up at the tree and cracked a grin. "You absolutely sure about that?"

Kurt looked up and saw a parachute tangled in the branches. Hanging from the parachute with a big old grin on his face was Skip Jones.

"What's up Doc?"


	58. The Pack

**Part 57: The Pack**

Natasha back herself up against a wall as Kate leaped up from her previous convalescing position. She had bounded over to Patrick and had torn his bonds with her bare hands. From that point they had ran throughout the base, apparently finding other qualified people to join their pack. The Knights seemed not to know what to do. Charlie, her daughter's high school teacher who was apparently a robot, had explained that most of the Knights today had never seen a werewolf in person. That, combined with the desperate situation made them open to this strange recruitment drive. Perhaps the strangest thing of all though, was that nobody who they bit objected. Every one of them willingly held out their arms and allowed themselves to be turned.

"Reck of a ring isn't it?" Natasha heard from down at her feet. At the same time she could feel a furry, warm body rubbing up against her. She looked down and saw a very beautiful golden dog.

"Chrissy right? You're the Rogers' other dog?"

"Reah, we've reen riding in rere rince the rattack."

Natasha looked back and saw three other dogs, one of whom was obviously heavily pregnant. They were all staring the same as her. "You've never seen anything like this?" Natasha asked.

"Rave you? Rit's just as rierd ror us, reeing dogs rand rumans rix."

Natasha and Chrissy quickly shut up as Kate, Patrick, and about a dozen other werewolves came walking in through the doors, striding confidently in a way that was really terrifying in its shear impossibility. They looked so inhuman, so otherworldly. Their eyes were bright yellow, their faces caught somewhere in between a lupine snout and a human head. They paid no attention to any of the non-werewolf humans, instead they just walked calmly out the door and toward the portal back into Coolsville.


	59. Balancing the Scales

"**I Don't Think Now is the Best Time" you know what it's from.**

**Part 58: Balancing the Scales**

Sam was pinned against the statue. Paoli was not even trying to use overt magic, he simply had his hand wrapped around Sam's throat. But Sam could feel the sparks of energy welling up in the man's fingers. He was about to get fried. Sam tried to discretely maneuver his arm up, working the switches on the spring loaded Derringer up his sleeve. Paoli caught the movement and snapped his other hand around Sam's arm, crushing the gun.

"What did you think killing me would do? It won't bring your friend back you know." Paoli shifted his body a bit and Sam caught a glimpse of the door behind him. He smiled. Paoli got right up in his face and sneered at him. "Are you smiling because you're finally going to join him?"

"No" Sam choked through Paoli's fingers. "I'm smiling…" A furry, clawed, hand grabbed Paoli by the shoulders and tossed him away. He flew into the opposite wall and slid down onto the mezzanine. Sam stood up and picked up his dagger off the floor. "I'm smiling because my wife is here."

Kate looked at him, more wolf in her face than woman, but she smiled at him and Sam smiled back. Together they charged up the steps to Paoli. Kate got to him first and tossed him against the railing. Down below the battle had flooded into the building. Werewolves were battling demons all around the statue and out on to the steps.

"Why fight?" Paoli yelled at them as they advanced on him. Sam could see him flexing his fingers. Years of knowing Fletcher had taught him that that meant he was working up his energy for another attack. "It is better this way. In Dracula's world you will know the peace of subjugation."

"How do you say this junk with a straight face?" Sam said as he got up to the man. "You were right about one thing though…" He could see Paoli looking past him and realizing that any escape attempt would be blocked by Kate. "Killing you won't bring Beau back, but I'm still a soldier, and you're still the enemy." Paoli brought his hand up for another blast of lightning but Sam was ready. He pushed the man's hand away, sending him off balance and letting him tumble over the railing. He never got the chance to try to save himself before he was impaled on the upper end of the statue's spear. "Yeah" Sam said turning away. "It won't bring him back, but he'd appreciate the gesture."


	60. Escape from Transylvania

"**Vale Decem" and "The New Doctor" both from **_**Doctor Who **_**(and in that order).**

**Part 59: Escape from Transylvania**

The gang, Van Ghoul, and Thorn erupted from the staircase at the top of a tower. Below they could see the battle raging. It was hard to tell from this high up who was winning. The armies were just blobs of color slamming against each other. Occasionally two would mix or one overtake another.

Thorn lifted herself off of Velma's shoulder. Most of the color had returned to her face. "I'm good now" She said, though her voice was still small. "I can stand."

Van Ghoul surveyed the turret they had escaped to. It was out in the open air, exposed to the starry sky above. It was also, undoubtedly, the highest point in Dracula's realm, which meant that he would soon find them.

"We should try to open the portal here. I fear that this is our last chance. Mister Rogers, if you would step to the center of the tower."

Shaggy took a step forward, his whole body shaking. Only too late did everyone realize that it was not the shakes of fear, but of sickness. Shaggy's knees buckled and he folded to the stone floor. Velma and Scooby ran to his side. Velma put a hand across his furry forehead and pulled it back, dripping with sweat. His eyes were shifting in and out of focus and he clasped and unclasped his hands at rapid pace.

"What's going on?"

Van Ghoul kneeled beside him. "The process Griffin put him through, it must not be long lasting."

"Rut roes rat rean?"

"Simply put, Dracula only needed him alive long enough to open the chest. The compound he was injected with is unstable. It's breaking down and taking him with it."

"I thought he was already part werewolf" Fred said.

Thorn stood toward the back, mumbling "I think I missed a few bits."

"He is already part werewolf, and that's why he's been able to survive this long, but whatever Griffin put in him is not a natural compound. It's not the same as being bitten, it's killing him."

"There has to be something you can do." Velma said.

Though Van Ghoul was able to keep up the pretense of calm, he was clearly beginning to grow frantic. "There are spells, but they have very specific requirements, a brother, caregivers, a link to his human life, and at least two witches."

Thorn raised her hand. "You have me."

"No" Van Ghoul shook his head. "I already lost Fletcher today I don't need another young witch dying from overexertion."

"Is there another option?"

Van Ghoul stood in silent contemplation and then shook his head grimly. "Fine, even if you had enough strength, what about the rest, his family is miles away."

"No" Fred stepped forward. "His family is right here, a brother," he pointed a Scooby. "Caregivers," he pointed to himself and Daphne, "and a link to the human world," he put his hand on Velma's shoulder. "Do it."

Van Ghoul relented. He had them quickly form a circle around Shaggy, with only Scooby and Velma in the middle with him. Velma cradled him in her arms and Scooby paced in a circle around him.

"Spirits of the wolf, grant this young man reprieve, for he has been given a curse that is impure, energies are out of balance…"

Shaggy began to convulse wildly. Velma struggled to keep him down. "What's happening?" She asked.

"He's too tense, he needs to be calmer. Someone calm him down."

The assembled circle looked around at each other for ideas. Then Velma looked down at Shaggy, thinking about all they had been through together. She leaned forward and kissed him full on the lips. Fred and Daphne looked on in shock, but Van Ghoul nodded in relief as the convulsing began to subside.

"Good, keep that up" he ordered.

"Don't think that'll be a problem for them" Fred said as both Velma and Shaggy seemed to forget where they were.

"Purge the false wolf from his body" Van Ghoul chanted. "Restore him to his rightful state."

Velma broke away as Shaggy sat upright. His mouth fell open and a trial of black smoke poured out, first form the mouth, then his eyes. There was a pained howl and then he slumped back into Velma's arms. All at once the fur fell away, the fangs shrunk back into teeth and the claws into fingernails. Shaggy's eyes fluttered open.

"Like why'd you stop?"

Fred and Daphne both threw their heads back in laughter and even Van Ghoul chuckled quietly.

"Yes touching, of course it means I will just have to kill him right now." Dracula landed on the tower, a large pair of bat's wings folding down and melting into his cloak.

He had the chest grasped firmly in both hands. Velma suddenly became aware of the key burning in her pocket.

"We will kill you before you could touch him."

"Powerful words Harker, Van Ghoul, whatever you call yourself, powerful but meaningless. Nobody is coming to rescue you, and without a proper Hound of God you have about as much chance of killing me as your parents did, or your little friends that you named yourself after."

The gang huddled together as Dracula advanced on them. This time it was the newly human and weakened Shaggy who was propped up on Velma's shoulder. Off in the distance the sounds of battle filled the air, the clashing of swords, the screams of pain, the hum of engines.

Everyone looked up into the sky. There was engine noise coming in, familiar engine noise. It grew louder as a large, forties era passenger plane swopped in over the tower. Van Ghoul smirked at Dracula.

"Everyone hold hands again, our ride is here."

Everyone obeyed. Van Ghoul, set in the center of the human chain, ran toward the edge of the tower and towards the plane. He jumped over the edge and, all other options exhausted, the others followed. For a brief moment every one of them regretted what they had just done. The wind soared past so fast that it felt like they would hit the ground at any moment. Their stomachs rose up into their throats and they were smothered by their own breaths. Then they were flying.

They soared upward, Van Ghoul carrying them toward the plane. Its door flew open and they shot inside, tumbling around in the cockpit before coming to a stop. Standing over them was a smiling Dell, wind from the open window whipping his hair around like everyone else's.

At the front of the plane Eric shoved the door closed. Now, secured in the moving vehicle, the gang could see their rescuers in full. There was, of course, Eric and Dell, Minga and Shannon were seated up in the actual pilots seats. Both turned and smiled at their friends before quickly going back to their jobs of not running into the large mountain ranges all around them. At the back of the plane, by the orb that facilitated magical transport, were Madelyn and another young man that Shaggy and Scooby thought they might vaguely recognize from the _Alice May _incident. Sitting by the orb as well, though looking far from normal, was Maggie Rogers. She, like her brother mere moments before, had fur covering her body. Her hands were clawed and her teeth had become fangs. But unlike Shaggy, everything looked proper. Somehow it just seemed right, so unlike the gruesome transformation Shaggy himself had gone through. He knew instantly that this was how his kind were meant to look.

Maggie looked up at him and smiled. She and the other two by the orb looked absolutely drained of energy. But she stood up, the fur falling off of her and revealing the human beneath. She ran up to Shaggy and wrapped her arms around him, then ran over to Scooby and did the same.

"Oh, nick of time guys" Fred panted as he walked into the pilot's cabin. Shannon cleared a space for him, seeing as he actually had a pilot's license.

"How did you manage this?" Van Ghoul asked as he crossed over to the Orb.

"Our two little sorcerers there" Dell pointed at Madelyn and the other boy.

"And brave little Maggie" Shannon said. "She's the reason we were even able to get to you, let herself be turned so we could ride your connection all the way here."

Shaggy slumped down into one of the seats. "Like that's great, but now that we're both here, how do we get back?"

Van Ghoul put his hands on the Orb and motioned for Thorn to join him. "That will be quite simple. Our young conjurers can even rest. Miss McKnight and I should be able to open a portal, and use the connection you and your sister have with your mother to bring us back."

Everyone nodded and cheered, everyone except Fred. "Hey, you said that we were boxed in here, no way in our out of the realm past a certain point right?"

"Yes" Van Ghoul said absently as he began to channel energy into the Orb. "That's why we are using the portal."

"Right, but how far can we go before we get smashed by some invisible force field, because we're not quite at _portaling_ speed yet."

"Oh" Van Ghoul grimaced. "The mountains, the mountains are the border."

Fred looked out the window at the mountains looming before them. He swerved away from them, mumbling a few curses under his breath. Back in the passenger cabin everyone was beginning to grow nervous. Fred looked around, trying to gage how much distance they had to build up speed. Suddenly a large black shape darted in front of the windshield. Fred and Minga recoiled as the winged form of Dracula shot towards them. Fred swerved upwards, putting the plane into a slow climb. Then he had an idea.

"What was that?" Daphne called.

"Nothing honey, but uh, everyone buckle up tight, I found a way to get us up to the speeds we need but you're not gonna like it."

In spite of this disclaimer, everyone did as they were told, fastening their seatbelts and tightening them as much as possible. Van Ghoul recited an incantation and both his and Thorn's feet were stuck in place on the floor by the orb, their hands magically stuck to it as well.

Fred pulled back on the yoke, pushing the plane higher. On a regular plane the engines would have given out long ago. It seemed that the portal device was not the only magical addition to this craft. The plane was almost vertical now, something that should really only be possible, or at least easy, with a smaller plane. Everyone strapped in in the passenger cabin began to moan as they ascended. Fred tried to push that out of his mind.

"Freddy, what are you doing?"

"You'll see" Fred called back, too preoccupied with pulling off his plan to bother explaining it.

Dracula flew by the window again, but unless he was suddenly equipped with some kind of fang Gatling gun Fred felt confident that he could not hurt them too bad. He glanced the speedometer on the control panel. A little white line had been drawn on it indicating the speed they needed to achieve for teleportation. At the moment they were nowhere close.

The peaks of the mountains grew small beneath them. It was almost time, Fred thought as he readied his mind for what came next. Then the plane rocked. Outside, just visible through the tiny windows, thousands of bats buffeted against the craft, trying to beat it to pieces. Dracula slammed against the window again, arms and legs splayed like and animal, fangs bared.

"Oh crap!" Fred yelped. "Okay, now or never" he mumbled to himself.

Fred stopped the ascent and began to level the plane off. In a matter of seconds they were horizontal again, then he kept lowering it. The nose of the craft dipped until they were vertical again, but this time facing the ground. Fred revved the engines and let them fall.

From the back came the sounds of all of his friends screaming. He could hear Daphne yelling at him for an explanation, peppering her speech with many Scottish and French curse words. Shaggy and Scooby's distinctive yells drowned out the others. Even Dracula looked surprised as the new rush of air slid him from the window.

"Yeah take that!" Fred yelled, happy with himself. The needle on the speedometer continued to climb. It was almost there, five more notches, four more, three, two… "We've reached portaling speed!" Fred shouted back into the passengers' cabin. "Take us home!"

Van Ghoul and Thorn began to pour energy into the orb. The nose of the plane began to glow. Then that glow spread outward, coalescing into a circle of light right in front of the plane. They soured through it.

Fred had shut his eyes against the glare but he was still stunned when he opened them again. Light shone through the window and he realized that the area around Castle Dracula had been in a perpetual state of darkness. The fact that he was now staring at dawn's light meant that they were back home.

"Uh Fred" Minga shrieked, pointing at the crowded street that they were fast approaching.

Fred jerked up on the yoke, pulling them out of their dive just as they sailed over the clock tower on City Hall. He aimed for a section of the street that was empty of people and largely burned away. He would worry about that later. Fred lowered the landing gear a little early, slamming into the uneven ground and skidding across it. The plane jolted and jumped and the screams of everyone in back went up a few octaves. Finally, after several blocks of this, and a harsh spin, they stopped.

The plane was silent except for Fred who was hollering like he had just won the Superbowl. He raised both hands into the air and screamed in delight, strutting out into the cabin and plopping down into the empty seat next to Daphne. He leaned over and kissed her full on the mouth for several seconds before separating and smiling to the cabin as a whole.

"Am I good or what?"


	61. The Plan

**Either "The Phoenix Rises" from **_**X-Men: The Last Stand**_**, or just find a playlist of the **_**Van Helsing**_** soundtrack and go from the beginning. **

**Part 60: The Plan**

The gang exited the plane to the cheers of the assembled crowd of Barbera County residents.

Shannon turned to Daphne as they walked off the plane. "Wait, I thought Uncle John and Aunt Rachael were with you?"

Daphne bowed her head as she pulled the pocket watch out of her coat. "I…" She choked. Shannon's eyes began to well up and she leaned on her cousin.

Scooby sighted Chrissie and ran to her. She smiled coyly at him as he pounced and licked at her face.

"Whoa, _Coyote_, in front of everyone?"

"Sorry" Scooby said. "I just got to realizing how much I liked being around other dogs. You smell really good by the way."

"Yeah" she smiled. "You smell… pretty horrible actually, but I gotta say, there's some strong Alpha vibe coming from you. What did you tackle a wolf or something."

This time Scooby smiled coyly. "Yeah, actually I got into a few fights with some wolves."

Chrissie's eyes went wide. "That is, to use the human expression, pretty hot."

The crowd parted as a familiar bright green van drove up to meet the returning heroes. It stopped and Red and Jimmy jumped out of the front seats. A few officers jumped out from the back, including Shaggy's father, Kate walking beside him. Shaggy, Maggie, and Scooby ran up to greet their family and Fred ran up to greet his van.

"You're back" Kate sobbed. "You made it, and you're human, aren't you?" She looked him over as though trying to find any sign of a tail. Shaggy realized what Maggie had told him, about how both of them had been bitten.

"Yeah, like uh, you still are too right?"

"I think so, but I still feel wrong about having bitten your sister." She ruffled Maggie's hair.

"It wasn't your fault Katie, it was instinct."

"I can feel it in me now, I want to bite Norville, to spread it."

She looked down at Shaggy like she expected him to back away, but he stayed put.

"Mom, Iwas a werewolf for a while where they took me. They tortured me, but it didn't matter, because some part of it felt right… the werewolfy-ness, not the torture, that part kinda sucked."

The crowd gasped around them. Some of them backed away, some ran. A loud chattering filled the air. Shaggy and the others turned around and their blood turned to ice. Dracula was walking down the boulevard, still dressed in full battle armor, a spear in one fist and the chest dangling from the other. He never breathed, never twitched, never gave a hint of life, yet it was plane to see that he was fuming.

"I want my chest opened. There are many of your kind around, I can feel it, and I know you have the key." His voice sounded like he had gravel down his throat. With each word the scar across his face, the one Jonathan Harker had inflicted, stretched. "I will be waiting in the tower" he pointed to the clock tower on City Hall. If I do not have a Hound and the key within twenty minutes, I will begin impaling every man, woman, child, and mangy mongrel" he flashed his fangs at Scooby, "in this town. Do I make myself clear?"

There must have been some kind of affirmative gesture from the crowd because Dracula took his bats and soared up into the tower. Most of the townspeople ran. Nobody would blame them.

"What the hell was that?" Shaggy shrieked. "I thought he couldn't be out in the sunlight."

"Book" Fred managed to say through the shock. The he composed himself as much as possible. "In the book he can, the sunlight thing comes from one of the movies."

"Rut do re do?"

"We…" Fred gulped. "I don't know."

"Like, yes you do" Shaggy said to him. "You're Fred Jones, the man with the plan."

"I don't, he can't be killed, right, nothing has worked I'm guessing?" He looked at Van Ghoul.

"Dracula is a demon, the mortal body of Vlad the Impaler was just a worthy vessel, a kindred spirit that the demon took on aspects of the longer it lived inside. But the moment the vessel is destroyed, the demon goes to a new body. That's what happened when my parents tried to kill him."

"That's not Vlad then?" Velma asked.

"No, that body was acquired shortly after World War Two, it resembles Vlad quite a bit, no doubt the demon's doing. He even replicated the scars my father gave him. Even if you go up there and manage to destroy the body, most likely it would be one of you who was the next host."

The gang all looked at each other. Nobody liked the thought of being the next Dracula. Velma was clutching the key in her hand. Fred glanced at it.

"I…" The corners of his mouth peaked up. "I… I think I have a plan. But," he looked over it Shaggy, "it's gonna mean a big choice for you man."

Shaggy gulped.

Fifteen minutes later, and with only five minutes to go before Dracula began turning Coolsville into Medieval Wallachia, Fred marched up the steps into the clock tower, the key in his hand. The tower was raised a few floors from the roof of city hall, making it one of the tallest points in Coolsville. The massive face, through which daylight was now shining, was run by a comparatively small mechanism. Still, the room behind it was a jungle gym of rafters and walkways, most of them coated in cobwebs.

Fred marched up to Dracula, not a weapon on him and feeling pretty powerless. He had begun to mentally scan the room for easily splintered wooden beams, hoping he could pull off a Buffy like Daphne had back in Germany. The again, hopefully it would not come to that.

"I'm here" He announced.

Dracula leapt from one of the rafters, landing in a perfectly postured standing position. The cape billowed. Bats up in the rafters chirped and flashed their glowing eyes at Fred.

"You are not who I was expecting. Are you a wolf?"

Fred gulped. "I was compatible, or whatever the term is, smell me." There was something he never thought he would say to a vampire, also on that list, everything he could possible ever say.

Dracula sniffed at the air. It was the only time Fred had seen his chest rise with breath. Then he grinned, showing off his fangs. "Good, open the chest" He pulled away his cape to reveal the small chest and kicked it in Fred's direction.

Fred kneeled down and began working the key into the lock. "Funny thing" Fred said with a nervous chuckle as he fiddled with the key. "When you're looking for something to be there, you can forget to think rationally. You were looking for me to smell like a dog, so you ignored the overpowering smell of dog in the room. You know werewolves don't have a strong scent, that took me about five minutes to figure out, but lucky for us, I happen to have a dog friend who, after being held captive without baths, was very pungent. Tell me Drac, do you smell wet dog?"

Daphne and Scooby sprung from the rafters, Scooby knocking Dracula with his claws and Daphne slicing at him with the Kukri. Velma and Shaggy ran out of the stairwell. Velma tossed Fred a large Bowie knife that one of the Knight's had had on him. Fred ran forward and plunged it into Dracula's heart. At the same time Daphne chopped at his neck, separating the head from the body. In that instant the body turned to dust. Six wraiths emerged from it, one was obviously the original Vlad Dracula, and one, according to Van Ghoul was his father Dracul. The others were the hosts whose bodies Dracula had warped into twisted images of the Impaler and is father, now restored to their original, uncomfortably familiar, forms.

One by one they faded away, not giving thanks like Verona had. These men had already been evil when Dracula possessed them, and if there was a place for their spirits to go, it was not going to be a good one.

A new wraith emerged from the ashes, this one only looking vaguely humanoid. It had the features of a bat, the ears and fangs, the leathery wings. But its eyes were almost reptilian, and its claws were almost like the claws of the dead dragon outside. It regarded each member of the gang.

"Shaggy" Fred said, not looking away from the thing, but careful not to make eye contact. "Now!"

Shaggy ran forward with the key in hand. He transformed as he moved, this time a much more graceful transformation than the one at Dracula's castle. The fur grew in, and the lupine claws. His eyes went amber and his snout elongated ever so slightly. He looked sleek and powerful, not like the malnourished beast with the matted fur from before.

He wrapped one clawed hand around the demon's throat and pinned it to the ground. It began beating its wings, trying to slap Shaggy with them. Scooby pounced on one, holding it long enough for Fred to stick it to the floor with his knife. Daphne and Velma stuck the other one with the Kukri. The creature began to snarl and Shaggy snarled right back.

"You are not all hounds" it said, its voice screechy, as though it was composed of thousands of bats chirping at different pitches to achieve a facsimile of human speech.

"Nope" Fred grunted, trying to pin down one of its legs. "But we had you good and fooled didn't we." He and Scooby high fived, hand to paw.

Shaggy had the key in his free hand. Velma slid the chest over to him. Reaching over the demon's head, Shaggy jammed the key into the lock. There was a loud click and a sound like air escaping from a soda bottle. The lid of the chest flew open and inside was the most terrifying thing any of them had ever seen.

They had no mass, no shape, but they constantly seemed to be trying to achieve both. It would have been impossible to count them, the gang only knowing the correct number because Van Ghoul had told them. Twelve demons tried to force their way out of the chest. Tendrils and claws reached out to grab hold of any member of the gang within possessing distance.

Fred, Velma, and Daphne brandished the spare bits of iron and silver they had brought with them. Scooby shook his head to ring the little silver bell tied to his collar. While they kept the other creatures at bay Shaggy wrestled Dracula into the chest, first his head was sucked in, shrinking as it went, then his shoulders, and soon all of him. With a mighty grunt form all five of them they closed the lid, the lock clicking automatically. Shaggy yanked the key out and tossed it to Velma, not wanting anymore to do with it.

Scooby kicked the chest to the side of the room and they all backed away from it, right up against the opposite wall. Fred had his arm around Daphne. Shaggy had one arm around Velma, the other draped over Scooby. Daphne limply reached a hand out to Scooby too, linking the five of them. They sat in that clock tower for a while, just catching their breath.


	62. Reparations

"**Reunited" from **_**Van Helsing,**_** "Into Eternity" from **_**Thor: The Dark World**_**, or "One Day" from _Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End_.****  
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**Part 61: Reparations**

Skip Jones took to the steps of City Hall. Someone had bothered to set up a microphone and podium, not necessarily for him, but appreciated it anyway. A few people were milling about, cleaning up, helping the wounded or mourning the dead. He could see the kids, not really kids he supposed, sitting in their van, just resting. He leaned in to the microphone.

_"My fellow citizens of Coolsville, Crystal Cove, Gatorsburg. I was told that someone should speak. By all rights it should be the mayor, unfortunately Mayor Snipper succumbed to his wounds an hour ago._

Van Ghoul listened as Charlie read off the casualty report. It was already climbing into the hundreds, and that was only members of the Brotherhood. He shuddered to think of how many civilians and officers had been lost.

Much as it pained him to admit it, he really only could think about John and Rachael. Both had been with the Knights since childhood. They had given everything to fighting Dracula, right up until their last moments.

_"Yeah, we lost some people, good people. We lost more people than we'll ever know, but as harsh as it is, that's too big to process. The chances are, though, that you lost someone close to you. No amount of sorries can make that better, but you have to now that everyone here is feeling exactly what you're feeling._

Sam held Kate close to him as a mixed party of Knights and Officers carried Beau's body away. There would be a funeral pyre for the slain Knights, most of them had wanted it that way, only a couple of them wanted more modern burials. Beau was not one of them.

_"It's hard to think about it, but the world just got a little bigger. We found out that everything we had always told ourselves was fake was actually real. There are monsters, and I don't mean in a metaphorical sense. I mean literally, the bogeymen are real._

Officer Kasem and Officer Messick watched as the surviving Demons were herded through a portal at the edge of town. They had been told they would face justice from the new Transylvanian government, whatever that meant. As the portal closed on the last of them Kasem thought he caught a glimpse of a large man with stitches around his face and lightning crackling at his fingertips. If that was Transylvanian justice, he decided that it would do just fine.

_"But, we also found out that there was something else hiding in the shadows. Yes there were always monsters, but as long as there have been monsters there have been people willing to fight them. These people have been watching over us the whole time, protecting us without ever asking anything in return. They came to our rescue before we even realized we were in danger, and they fought and died with us for the safety of these towns and this world._

Red stood idly in the parlor of the Griffin House. With him were Proudwolf, Chillman, the Sherriff and Mayor of Crystal Cove, Fleach and her girlfriend, and a few pairs of Police Officers. One of the Knights stepped out of that magic wardrobe and began passing a piece of paper around. _Knights of Van Helsing Sign Up_.

_"But most of all, I think, and not to downplay what everyone else did, or to play favorites, we owe a great deal to the kids, I sorry, men and women… and dog from Mysteries Incorporated, who decided that it was there job to fight the unknown long before any of us did. And that's what we've done here today, fought the unknown, and isn't that something to be proud of. Yeah, the bogeymen are real, but we stood up, looked them in the eye, and made them go away._


	63. Epilogue

**"Drink Up Me Hearties Yo Ho" from _Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End._**

**Part 62: Epilogue**

Luke Jones stuck the paperclip into the lock of the old trunk in his family's attic. It was a family talent, one that his mother would probably regret passing on if she caught him snooping around the trunk. By the stairs his sister Selina kept look out.

"Is it open?" Winnie Rogers asked.

"Yeah, and is it treasure?" Her brother Henry joined in.

Luke shot Trudy a look. "Quiet them before someone hears us." He whispered.

"You agreed to let them come" Trudy said laconically.

"Yeah, well they're your siblings so you keep them quiet."

Luke continued to work the lock. Down the hall he could hear footsteps. His breath caught in his throat. If that was his mom or dad, or Trudy's mom or dad, they were toast. His parents had forbidden them from coming to look up in the attic. They said it was dangerous. Luke had to agree, given that there was a large wall of weapons. Of course that just made it all the more tantalizing.

"Is it them?"

Selina turned to him. "Would asking have helped if it were?"

"Shut up Selina" Luke said, then breathed a sigh of relief as his and Selina's puppy Scrappy trotted up the stairs. "Scrappy, what's the good word?"

"Rey're rill talking" he barked. "Rast I recked."

"Good" Luke turned back to his work.

After another few minutes the lock made that clicking noise that he loved so much and Luke lifted the lid. He, Selina, Scrappy, Trudy, and the twins, looked inside. There were two large knives, odd that they would be locked away instead of on the weapons rack two yards away. There was also a golden watch and a photograph of their parents and Scooby when they were young, though still obviously older than the kids were now. On the back was written _Mysteries Inc. Case # 1, the first of many_.

"First case, your dad's first book." Trudy laughed. She loved the _Mysteries Incorporated_ Series.

"Yeah, that was before they got weird and magicy" Selina said.

Under the picture was a small, golden key. Luke picked it up and examined it. It felt like real gold, it was certainly heavy. There was a symbol on the top, a V over and H and a wolf's head sculpted along the handle. Henry reached out for it and Luke held it up to him so he could get a look. That was when the attic door opened.

"Luke Jonathan Jones you put that back" His mother snapped, her voice going a bit Scottish as it often did when she yelled.

Luke dropped the key back into the chest as his dad, Aunt Velma, Uncle Shaggy, and Uncle Scooby came up the ladder. Luke's mom and Aunt Velma looked furious, but Luke's dad looked amused if anything.

"Yeah, told you that would happen if you told them not to come up here."

"Meddling Kids" Uncle Shaggy laughed. "Just like us."

**The End**

**Well, it's been a hell of a ride folks. I know for a fact that I'm not going remember to say everything I want to say, but I'll give it a shot anyway. Firstly I' like to thank everyone single of of you that read this and indulged my mad ideas, and, not to play favorites, but special thanks to everyone who commented the whole way through, from my first readers to my last. You guys really deserve it too. You hear stories about the big bad internet but you all really make a guy feel welcome.**

**I've been writing this series, this _Dracula Chronicles _(spoilerific title, huh?) for about five years now. While it hasn't taken up my entire life, as the large pauses in between stories can attest, it has been a big part of it. You really have no idea how much extra background material for this universe I have saved on my computer (but just to give you an idea, you know that blog of Fred's mentioned way back in the fourth story, I have it written up).**

**I feel that I also owe thanks to everyone who has ever done official work on Scooby Doo, from the creators to the voice actors, and to the rights holders who have been kind enough not to kick down our digital doors and sue us all out of existence. This series never would have existed without them. I'd also like to thank the Academy, not because they had a damn thing to do with this, but because it's the done thing.**

**Much like this _afterword _there was a lot that never made it into the series due to pacing or other issues. Chrissie was meant to get a lot more screen time, as were the cops (love those guys). A few people who were meant to get more screen time but then had it deliberately taken from them were the Fletchers. Now make no mistake, I love them, but I think that was the problem. They became too important. I felt that the finale should be for Scooby characters not mine. So they, Warner, Luna, and Remus had to die. Sorry for going all Whedon on you like that, but it had to be done. I do love them though, because of all the characters in this series they're the only ones that I can call my own.**

**I know I promised a story after this, as you have probably figured out, it'll be about the kids. I'll write it I'm fairly sure, but I've gotta take a break for a little while. You can imagine how taxing it was to put this thing together, tying together plot threads that have evolved in my head for the past five years.**

**But once again, you've all been great. I hope you enjoyed it as I've enjoyed writing it for you. So for now, this is _Green Platypus_ signing off, you stay classy Internet.**


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